Kalakriti Art Gallery in collaboration with Aadi Chitra presents an exhibition of Tribal paintings from the collection of Tribes of India, Saura - Odisha, Pithora - Gujarat, Warli - Maharashtra and Gond - Madhya Pradesh. This exhibition opens on 15^th February at 6.30pm, and, is on view until 28^th February 2014. Also, present will be artists Paresh Rathwa from Gujarat and Kalabai Shyam (National Awardee) from Madhya Pradesh giving live demonstration to the audience on 15^th – 19^th February between 11am to 7pm.

Each artwork in this exhibition in terms of interpretation and expression is individual. Explore below texts to for more information about these four art forms.

Pithora paintings, it is a tribal art form from Gujarat which has never been fully explored. This art form is rich in motifs, folk lore and tradition, and is exclusively a male domain, can be created only by men. Traditionally, the Pithora paintings were drawn on walls as an offering to God asking Him for good health, prosperity and success and to ward off evil and also as a form of thanksgiving. In Pithora paintings, horses seem to have galloped out of a fairy tale; attractive human figures exude a rustic charm and the rural settings instantly capture one’s imagination.

The Saura paintings depict primitive everyday life, they are meant to appease the presiding deity who is invoked during all rituals and celebrations. The themes of these paintings are usually dream sequences. There is, though, a deeper meaning to each work that the artists produce. This invocation in the Saura paintings is shown through assorted symbols drawn from their day to day living, cults and myths with each holding a meaning for their worship.

Warli paintings were done only for special occasions such as weddings or harvests. The ritual paintings are usually done inside the huts. The walls are made of a mixture of branches, earth and cow dung, making a red ochre background for the wall paintings. They use only white for their paintings which is a mixture of rice paste and water with gum as a binding. The artists use a very basic forms- a circle, a triangle and a square. The central motif in these ritual paintings is surrounded by scenes portraying hunting, fishing and farming, festivals and dances, trees and animals.

The Gond art hails from the Gond Tribal Community of Central India. Their art is a medium to express their daily life’s quest. It holds the faith which says that seeing a good image, begets good fortune. The Gonds use customary motifs and tattoos to adorn their dwellings as well as their floors. The artists employ acrylic on canvas and ink on paper for their artworks. Gond paintings materialize like a collage of dashes and dots. The collage combines into bright images of animals and plants, articulating folklores. The art is in black and white as well as colored variety. These pieces of creativity are affluent in color, humor, detail and mystery.

These tribal art forms have enthralled the global art market. It has carved a niche for itself. With such national and international exposure, lives of the tribal artists have transformed. They are encouraged to rise above cultural fences and dip the idiom of the universe in paints according to a special way of their own. Besides the paintings, there are a wide range of products embellished with the tribal art motifs for sale, like, mugs, note cards and cool tees.

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