Karnataka, India
Chitara
Chitara is a traditional wall and cloth painting practised by the Chitara community of North Karnataka, using rice paste on cloth or walls to create intricate auspicious patterns and deity narratives in a bold white-on-red visual language.
History
The Story Behind the Art
The Chitara community of North Karnataka are hereditary ritual artists who have practised their tradition for generations, creating paintings for homes, temples, and ceremonies tied to the ritual calendar.
Chitara paintings were traditionally made on freshly plastered walls and floors. As the tradition adapted, artists began working on cloth and paper.
The tradition is practised primarily in the Dharwad and Haveri districts of Karnataka, supported by craft organisations and the Karnataka government.
Techniques
How It Is Made
Chitara paintings are created using rice paste on a red or ochre background, producing a distinctive white-on-red visual language. Figures are drawn with confident freehand strokes using a bamboo pen.
Compositions are typically arranged symmetrically, with a central deity figure flanked by attendants and surrounded by decorative borders.
Materials Used
- •Cotton cloth or handmade paper
- •Rice paste for white painting
- •Red ochre for background
- •Bamboo pen or brush
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