All about Mandana Painting

Introduction 

Jyoti Bhatt, woman drawing mandana design Rajasthan

Mandana is an art in which intricate designs are created on the floors and entry ways of houses and temples to bring good luck,peace,prosperity and happiness into the home. Rangoli is applied freehand by taking colors in the form of powdered rice, white,limestone,chalk or flour in a dry form or as a paste.The artists fingers serve as a brush.

    

Pray for Non Violence - by artist Lakhi Chnad Jain

Mandana is a different form of the Sanskrit word 
'mandan' which means to discover and mandana means to draw with lives and create a work of art.There was a time when mandana was used to a very large extent in their states and the people would create large and colorful mandanas.


About Paintings

Photographic documentation of mandana - by Madan Meena

It is the folk craft of decorating houses. Red sand and chalk powder are used to make designs on floors and walls.This art is quite popular in the rural areas of Rajasthan. Different types of squares,rectangular and floral designs are made suiting the particular season or festival. Several mandana motifs have started appearing on block printed textiles also.

photographic documentation of mandana - by Madan Meena

Mandana art has always been symbolic of festive and during Diwali,Holi and other religious occasions. Mandana drawings were done on mud layered walls of homes, on public walls and chowks(squares).But these types of homes no longer exist to recreate a perfect mandana art motif.

History

The origin of painting is traced to a moving legend recorded in the chitralakshana - the earliest Indian treatise on painting. When the son of a king's high priest died, Brahma - lord of the universe, asked the king to paint the likeness of the boy so that he may breathe life into him again.This is how it is beleived to be the first painting was made.

Another popular story is that God in one of his creative provocation extracted the juice from one of the mango trees as paint and drew the figure of a woman so beautiful that it put the heavenly maidens to shame.

The Chola rulers made extensive use of floor paintings, Thus they are known by different names in different parts of the country - Alpana in Bengal, Aripana in Bihar, Mandana in Rajasthan, Rangoli in gujarat & Maharashtra, Chowk - Purna in Uttar Pradesh and Kolam in the South India.

Purpose

Decorating the floor in different parts of the house is believed to be a good omen.The entrance decoration is a gesture of welcome.Elaborate designs are made on all occasions. One important point is that the entire graph must be an unbroken line with no gaps to be left anywhere between the line for evil spirits to enter.

Mandana was also drawn to safeguard that sacred space from the 'asuras' (demons), so that gods and goddesses would grace the occasion without fear. In case they could not find their way to the venue, directions were also drawn.

Designs and Patterns

The designs are symbolic and basically common to the whole country like geometrical patterns, with lines, dots, squares, circles, triangles, the swastika, lotus, trident fish, conch- shell, foot- prints (suppose to be of goddess Lakshmi), creepers, leaves, trees, flowers, animals and anthropomorphic figures. These motifs often are modified to fit in with the local images and rhythms.

            

Paisley, 'Pan' (betel leaves) , Pair of Leaves , Peacocks etc were used as Motifs 

  

  

Deepawali Mandana

Mandana for Holy Work

 

Mandana on which the deity resides

Lakshmi Pooja Mandana 

   

Preparation method

During Diwali villages with mud homes would be layered with 'geru' -'gobar'( brick and cow dung solution) to give an even and dry surface.
 


Ater drying, a small strip of cloth(white) would be dipped in the mixture and a mandana drawn on every corner of the houses - doors, windows, courtyards and walls. First an outline and then various shapes like triangles, squares, perpendicular lines, rectangles, octagons were drawn which were anywhere between two to ten feet large. While drawing mandanas, one needs to have complete concentration because mistakes cannot be improved on or corrected. Only a thin stick with the tip covered in cotton is used. This unique art is sometimes drawn from inside out or outside in. Small dots and lines are used to make a complete form. Just using various geometrical patterns can also create different styles, with each having its own personality.

After the mandana dries,according to the occasions , kalash(metal pot), chaval(rice), Phul- Patti(flowers and leaves), supari(areca nut), nagweli(areca leaves) and diya(mud lamps) are used to decorate it. Earlier, the use of sindoor(vermilian), haldi(turmeric), neel(indigo) and Phul- Patti(flowers and leaves) were groud to create colors. It is regarded as in auspicious to keep the garden and open spaces in homes empty during festive occasions.

Finished Products With Mandana art (ceramic cone work)