Warli Painting is one of the oldest Indian Art Forms. It originated from Maharashtra.
Warli Paintings
The Warli Painting is a style of Tribal Art, mainly from the North Sahyadri Range in Maharashtra. Cities like Dahanu, Talasari, Jawhar, Palghar, Mokhanda and Vikramgad of Palghar district still practice this tribal art form. The art form uses circles, triangles and squares to form different shapes, illustrating the daily life activities.
Activities like fishing, hunting, festivals and dance are illustrated in Warli Paintings.
The Human shape which is comprised of a circle and two triangles makes this art form unique. Paintings are done on dark background and the shapes are in white colour. The art form is made popular by artists like Jivya Soma Mashe and others.
Colours and Symbols
Warli artists use their clay huts as backgrounds for their painting. The shapes symbolize different elements of the nature. The circle represents the Sun and the Moon. Triangle represents the Mountains and Pointed Trees. The square symbolizes a sacred enclosure or piece of land. People and Animals are represented by two inverse triangles joined at their tips.
Warli paintings are done by White pigment made from a mixture of rice flour and water. Gum is used as a binder. Paint brushes are made out of bamboo stick chewed at the end to give the texture of a paint brush.
