Painting Schools, Sculpture and Temple Architecture Styles

What to remember

• Painting moved from cave walls (Bhimbetka, Ajanta) to palm-leaf and paper miniatures (Pala, Jain, Rajasthani, Mughal, Deccan, Pahari) and to cloth (Kalamkari, Tanjore).
• Sculpture has regional schools: Gandhara (Greco-Roman, grey schist), Mathura (local, red sandstone) and Amaravati (Andhra, white marble). Later South India made world-famous bronzes (Chola Nataraja).
• Temple architecture has three main styles: Nagara (North, curved tower called shikhara), Dravida (South, pyramid tower called vimana, with gateway towers called gopuram) and Vesara (Deccan, a mix of both).

Early and cave painting

Prehistoric rock paintings at Bhimbetka (Madhya Pradesh) show hunting, dancing and animals. Artists used natural colours, mostly red and white.

Ajanta caves (Maharashtra) have Buddhist paintings. They show the Jataka stories (past births of the Buddha). The most famous figures are Padmapani and Vajrapani, the Bodhisattvas. The paintings are done on dry plaster in tempera style. Bagh caves (Madhya Pradesh) are another Buddhist site. Sittanavasal (Tamil Nadu) has Jain paintings. Badami (Karnataka) has early Chalukya-period paintings.

South Indian wall painting continued under the Vijayanagara rulers. The Veerabhadra temple at Lepakshi has large ceiling murals on stories from the epics and Puranas.

Miniature painting

Miniatures are small paintings on paper, palm leaf or cloth, often kept in manuscripts.

Mughal painting. Humayun brought the Persian masters Mir Sayyid Ali and Abdus Samad to India. Akbar set up a workshop (karkhana) for artists. The big project of his time was the illustrated Hamzanama. Jahangir loved nature, birds, animals and portraits; Ustad Mansur was a well-known painter of animals and birds. Under Shah Jahan, painting became formal and rich in gold. Aurangzeb gave little support.

Company school. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Indian artists painted for British officers. They showed local trades, plants and monuments in a European style.

Folk and textile painting (including Andhra)

• Kalamkari means "pen work". Two Andhra styles exist: the Srikalahasti style, where the artist draws freehand with a bamboo pen and paints religious stories, and the Machilipatnam style, which uses wooden blocks and vegetable dyes.
• Tanjore (Thanjavur) painting uses gold foil and gems on wood, with Krishna and gods at the centre.
• Madhubani (Bihar), Warli (Maharashtra, white geometric figures on mud walls), Pattachitra (Odisha and Bengal, painted scrolls) and Kalighat (Kolkata, bold lines) are well-known folk forms.
• Tholu bommalata (Andhra shadow puppetry) uses painted leather figures.

Sculpture

Shape of the Buddha is a favourite test topic. Gandhara shows foreign features, Mathura shows Indian features, and Amaravati shows a flowing, lively style.

Temple architecture styles

Nagara (North India). The temple stands on a raised platform. The tower (shikhara) curves inward and upward. Boundary walls and large gateways are usually absent. Examples: Khajuraho group (Chandela), Sun Temple at Konark and Lingaraja at Bhubaneswar (Odisha style).

Dravida (South India). The tower over the sanctum is the vimana, stepped like a pyramid. A walled courtyard has tall gateway towers (gopurams) and pillared halls (mandapas). Examples: Pallava Shore Temple at Mahabalipuram, Brihadisvara temple at Thanjavur (Chola), and later Vijayanagara temples.

Vesara (Deccan). A hybrid of Nagara and Dravida. Examples: Hoysala temples at Belur and Halebidu (star-shaped base, very fine carving) and early Chalukya temples at Aihole and Pattadakal.

Andhra and Telangana examples.

• Kakatiya period: the Ramappa (Rudreswara) temple at Palampet is famous for its light "floating" bricks and its fine dancer sculptures. The Thousand Pillar Temple at Hanamkonda is another example.
• Eastern Chalukya (Vengi) temples such as those at Draksharamam and Bhimavaram show a mix of styles.
• Lepakshi has the Veerabhadra temple with a famous hanging pillar and a huge Nandi.
• Srisailam and Tirumala are major hill temples; Undavalli has rock-cut cave temples. Amaravati has an ancient Buddhist stupa.

Techniques, themes and how to identify a style

Cave paintings at Ajanta were made on a dry wall. The wall was first coated with clay and lime plaster. Artists then drew an outline in red, filled in colour, and finished with dark outlines. Colours came from minerals and plants. The paintings show monks, kings, women and animals, and the folds of cloth and expressions of the face are drawn with great skill.

Miniatures are known by their themes. Jain miniatures illustrate religious books. Rajasthani miniatures illustrate the Ramayana, the Bhagavata Purana and the Gita Govinda. A Ragamala painting shows a musical mode (raga) as a human scene, often with a hero and heroine in a season or time of the day. Pahari paintings show Radha and Krishna in soft colours with green hills. Mughal paintings are known for fine detail, shading, and true-to-life faces; a Rajput painting is flatter and brighter.

Mughal manuscripts. Akbar's artists also illustrated the *Akbarnama* and translations of the Mahabharata (the *Razmnama*). Jahangir's period is known for the court scenes and nature studies kept in albums. Colour in a Mughal work was prepared from minerals and plants, and gold and silver were used on borders.

Pahari schools. The Basohli style uses strong colours and large eyes. Guler is the early home of the more refined style that later flowered at Kangra. Kangra painting shows soft faces and gentle landscapes.

Temple parts and sculpture detail

Every temple has a few standard parts. The garbhagriha is the small inner room (sanctum) where the main image is placed. A hall in front is called a mandapa. The tower above the sanctum is called the shikhara in the north and the vimana in the south. Many temples also have a pradakshina patha (circumambulation path). Early temples were simple. Later temples added courtyards, tanks and many shrines. In South India, the gopuram over the gate grew taller than the vimana in later Chola and Vijayanagara times.

The rock-cut tradition is old. Buddhist chaityas (prayer halls) and viharas (monasteries) were cut into rock in the Mauryan and Satavahana periods. Monolithic temples are carved from a single rock, as at Mahabalipuram (the Pancha Rathas). Structural temples are built from stone blocks, as at the Shore Temple. In Andhra, the Buddhist sites of Amaravati, Nagarjunakonda and Bhattiprolu show an early stupa tradition, and the Undavalli and Bhairavakona caves show rock-cut work.

Quick comparison of the three styles

Exam traps

• Gandhara vs Mathura. Gandhara is grey schist with Greek features; Mathura is red sandstone and Indian.
• Nagara vs Dravida tower. Shikhara (North, curved) is not the same as vimana (South, pyramid). Gopuram is the gateway tower, not the sanctum tower.
• Vesara is the Deccan mixed style, not a separate northern style.
• Ajanta vs Ellora. Ajanta is famous for Buddhist paintings; Ellora for rock-cut sculptures of three religions.
• Kalamkari styles. Srikalahasti is hand-drawn with a pen; Machilipatnam is block-printed.
• Pala vs Jain miniatures. Pala is Buddhist, on palm leaf; Jain is on Jain texts, with angular faces.
• Mughal artists. Mir Sayyid Ali and Abdus Samad came with Humayun; Ustad Mansur was Jahangir's painter of birds and animals.
• Amaravati style belongs to Andhra, not to Mathura or Gandhara.

One-liners

• 1. Bhimbetka rock paintings are in Madhya Pradesh.
• 2. Ajanta shows Jataka stories and Buddhist art.
• 3. Sittanavasal paintings are Jain.
• 4. Hamzanama was illustrated at Akbar's court.
• 5. Bani Thani belongs to the Kishangarh school.
• 6. Kangra is a Pahari school.
• 7. Srikalahasti Kalamkari uses a freehand pen.
• 8. Mathura sculpture uses red sandstone.
• 9. Chola bronzes use the lost-wax method.
• 10. The Nataraja shows Shiva as the cosmic dancer.
• 11. Brihadisvara temple at Thanjavur is a Dravida temple built by the Cholas.
• 12. Belur and Halebidu are Hoysala (Vesara) temples with star-shaped bases.

Practice questions

1. Bhimbetka rock shelters, known for prehistoric paintings, are in which state?

   1. Madhya Pradesh
   2. Odisha
   3. Rajasthan
   4. Karnataka
   Answer

   A. Madhya Pradesh

   Bhimbetka lies in Madhya Pradesh.

2. The Bodhisattva figure Padmapani is painted in which cave complex?

   1. Badami
   2. Elephanta
   3. Ajanta
   4. Sittanavasal
   Answer

   C. Ajanta

   Padmapani is a famous Ajanta painting.

3. The cave paintings of Sittanavasal belong to which religion?

   1. Jainism
   2. Buddhism
   3. Vaishnavism
   4. Shaivism
   Answer

   A. Jainism

   Sittanavasal paintings are Jain.

4. The famous 'Bani Thani' painting belongs to which school?

   1. Basohli
   2. Golconda
   3. Bundi
   4. Kishangarh
   Answer

   D. Kishangarh

   Bani Thani is the best-known Kishangarh work.

5. The illustrated manuscript Hamzanama was produced under which ruler?

   1. Jahangir
   2. Akbar
   3. Shah Jahan
   4. Aurangzeb
   Answer

   B. Akbar

   It was a major project of Akbar's court workshop.

6. Which painter came from Persia with Humayun?

   1. Govardhan
   2. Bishandas
   3. Mir Sayyid Ali
   4. Ustad Mansur
   Answer

   C. Mir Sayyid Ali

   Mir Sayyid Ali and Abdus Samad came with Humayun.

7. Ustad Mansur, a court painter of Jahangir, was best known for painting

   1. birds and animals
   2. temple murals
   3. palm-leaf manuscripts
   4. battle maps
   Answer

   A. birds and animals

   Mansur was famous for nature studies.

8. In which style of Kalamkari does the artist draw freehand with a bamboo pen?

   1. Machilipatnam
   2. Srikalahasti
   3. Madhubani
   4. Kalighat
   Answer

   B. Srikalahasti

   Srikalahasti Kalamkari is pen-drawn.

9. Machilipatnam Kalamkari is mainly made using

   1. palm-leaf etching
   2. gold foil and gems
   3. stencil and spray
   4. wooden blocks and vegetable dyes
   Answer

   D. wooden blocks and vegetable dyes

   The Machilipatnam style is block printing.

10. Mathura school sculptures are mostly made of

    1. grey schist
    2. red sandstone
    3. white marble
    4. black basalt
    Answer

    B. red sandstone

    Mathura used spotted red sandstone.

11. Gandhara school sculptures are mostly made of

    1. red sandstone
    2. granite
    3. bronze
    4. grey schist
    Answer

    D. grey schist

    Gandhara used grey schist and stucco.

12. Chola bronzes were cast by which technique?

    1. lost-wax (cire perdue)
    2. sand-core moulding
    3. stone inlay
    4. hammered sheet work
    Answer

    A. lost-wax (cire perdue)

    Chola bronzes used the lost-wax process.

13. The curved tower over the sanctum in North Indian temples is called

    1. vimana
    2. mandapa
    3. shikhara
    4. gopuram
    Answer

    C. shikhara

    Shikhara is the Nagara tower.

14. The gateway tower of South Indian temples is called

    1. torana
    2. shikhara
    3. gopuram
    4. garbhagriha
    Answer

    C. gopuram

    Gopuram is the gateway tower of Dravida temples.

15. The temples at Belur and Halebidu were built by the

    1. Chandelas
    2. Pallavas
    3. Eastern Gangas
    4. Hoysalas
    Answer

    D. Hoysalas

    They are Hoysala temples with star-shaped bases.

16. Ramappa (Rudreswara) temple at Palampet was built in the period of the

    1. Chalukyas of Badami
    2. Kakatiyas
    3. Cholas
    4. Satavahanas
    Answer

    B. Kakatiyas

    It is a Kakatiya temple.

17. The Veerabhadra temple with a hanging pillar is at

    1. Lepakshi
    2. Draksharamam
    3. Undavalli
    4. Srisailam
    Answer

    A. Lepakshi

    Lepakshi is famous for its hanging pillar and murals.

18. The Sarnath lion capital belongs to which period?

    1. Pallava
    2. Kushan
    3. Mauryan
    4. Gupta
    Answer

    C. Mauryan

    It was set up by Ashoka and is the national emblem base.

19. The Amaravati school of sculpture is associated with which region?

    1. Gandhara
    2. Andhra
    3. Mathura
    4. Odisha
    Answer

    B. Andhra

    Amaravati is in Andhra and gave a white-marble tradition.

20. The Gandhara Buddha shows wavy hair and heavy robes because of

    1. Mauryan court rules
    2. Chinese influence
    3. Dravidian tradition
    4. Greco-Roman influence
    Answer

    D. Greco-Roman influence

    Gandhara art blended Indian themes with Greek and Roman style.

21. A Ragamala painting shows

    1. a musical mode as a human scene
    2. a family tree of kings
    3. a map of a kingdom
    4. a battle plan
    Answer

    A. a musical mode as a human scene

    Ragamala paintings give raga a pictorial form.

22. Pala school miniatures were mainly painted on

    1. glass sheets
    2. temple ceilings
    3. cotton cloth
    4. palm-leaf Buddhist manuscripts
    Answer

    D. palm-leaf Buddhist manuscripts

    Pala art is the earliest miniature tradition, on Buddhist manuscripts.

23. The inner room of a Hindu temple where the main image stands is the

    1. gopuram
    2. pradakshina
    3. garbhagriha
    4. mandapa
    Answer

    C. garbhagriha

    Garbhagriha means the sanctum.

24. The Pancha Rathas of Mahabalipuram are examples of

    1. monolithic rock-cut temples
    2. wooden shrines
    3. Hoysala star temples
    4. stupa gateways
    Answer

    A. monolithic rock-cut temples

    They are each carved from a single rock.

25. Which temple style is called a mix of Nagara and Dravida features?

    1. Kalinga
    2. Vesara
    3. Nayaka
    4. Gandhara
    Answer

    B. Vesara

    Vesara is the Deccan hybrid style.

26. Tanjore paintings are known for the use of

    1. only black ink
    2. sand colours
    3. charcoal sketches
    4. gold foil and gems
    Answer

    D. gold foil and gems

    Gold foil gives Tanjore paintings their glow.

27. Warli painting, with white geometric figures on mud walls, comes from

    1. Maharashtra
    2. Assam
    3. Kerala
    4. Punjab
    Answer

    A. Maharashtra

    Warli is a tribal art of Maharashtra.

28. Which painting school of the Himalayan foothills is known for soft colours and delicate faces?

    1. Kalighat
    2. Ahmednagar
    3. Kangra
    4. Marwar
    Answer

    C. Kangra

    Kangra is a refined Pahari school.

29. The Company school of painting was made by Indian artists for

    1. Jain monks on manuscripts
    2. British officers in a European style
    3. Mughal princes in Persian style
    4. Maratha chiefs on forts
    Answer

    B. British officers in a European style

    It showed local scenes in European technique.

30. At Sanchi and Bharhut, the Buddha was shown in early art through

    1. large bronze statues
    2. wall paintings only
    3. portrait coins
    4. symbols like the wheel and footprints
    Answer

    D. symbols like the wheel and footprints

    Early Buddhist art avoided showing the Buddha in human form.

31. The Chola Nataraja bronze shows Shiva as

    1. a hunter
    2. a yogi under a tree
    3. the cosmic dancer
    4. the destroyer of Daksha only
    Answer

    C. the cosmic dancer

    Nataraja is Shiva's dancing form.

32. Consider the statements: 1. Ajanta paintings include Jataka stories. 2. Ajanta is a Hindu temple complex. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    Ajanta is a Buddhist cave complex.

33. Consider the statements: 1. Gandhara sculpture mainly used red sandstone. 2. Mathura sculpture shows a local Indian style. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Gandhara used grey schist; Mathura is local style.

34. Consider the statements: 1. Nagara temples have a curved shikhara. 2. Dravida temples have a vimana and gopuram. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both describe the two styles correctly.

35. Consider the statements: 1. Srikalahasti Kalamkari is block printed. 2. Machilipatnam Kalamkari is drawn freehand with a pen. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    D. Neither 1 nor 2

    Both are reversed: Srikalahasti is pen-drawn; Machilipatnam is block-printed.

36. Consider the statements: 1. Kangra is a Pahari school. 2. Bani Thani belongs to the Mughal school. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    Bani Thani is Kishangarh, a Rajasthani school.

37. Consider the statements: 1. Chola bronzes were carved from stone. 2. They were cast by the lost-wax method. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Chola bronzes are metal castings.

38. Consider the statements: 1. Humayun brought Persian painters to India. 2. Akbar's workshop produced the Hamzanama. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both are accurate.

39. Consider the statements: 1. Vimana is the tower of North Indian temples. 2. Shikhara is the tower of South Indian temples. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    D. Neither 1 nor 2

    The two are reversed.

40. Match the paintings with their features. (a) Bani Thani (b) Sittanavasal (c) Basohli (d) Hamzanama 1 Pahari school 2 Jain paintings 3 Kishangarh school 4 Akbar's court

    1. a-3, b-1, c-2, d-4
    2. a-3, b-2, c-1, d-4
    3. a-1, b-2, c-3, d-4
    4. a-2, b-3, c-1, d-4
    Answer

    B. a-3, b-2, c-1, d-4

    Bani Thani-Kishangarh; Sittanavasal-Jain; Basohli-Pahari; Hamzanama-Akbar.

41. Match the temples with their builders. (a) Brihadisvara (b) Ramappa (c) Khajuraho (d) Belur 1 Chandelas 2 Hoysalas 3 Cholas 4 Kakatiyas

    1. a-3, b-4, c-1, d-2
    2. a-4, b-3, c-1, d-2
    3. a-3, b-4, c-2, d-1
    4. a-3, b-1, c-4, d-2
    Answer

    A. a-3, b-4, c-1, d-2

    Brihadisvara-Chola; Ramappa-Kakatiya; Khajuraho-Chandela; Belur-Hoysala.

42. Consider the statements: 1. Undavalli has rock-cut cave temples. 2. Amaravati is known for a Buddhist stupa tradition. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both facts are standard.

43. Consider the statements: 1. Madhubani painting is from Bihar. 2. Warli painting is from Odisha. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    Warli is from Maharashtra.

44. Consider the statements: 1. The Indus 'dancing girl' is a stone statue. 2. Mauryan pillars have a high polish. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    The dancing girl is a bronze.

45. Consider the statements: 1. Lepakshi has a famous hanging pillar. 2. Ramappa temple is known for its light floating bricks. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both are well-known features.