Art Galleries in Tamil Nadu

Painting

Tanjore is famous for its paintings made on different objects. Artisans use wood, glass, mica, ivory and walls to paint using attractive colours. Jewels, drapery and architectural elements like finely executed pillars, rich canopies, garlands of ropes and chandeliers are slightly raised by the use of special plaster, covered with pure gold leaf and embedded with semi-precious stone of different colors. Painting on ivory, mica, and the more difficult genre of glass paintings, were all introduced in the 18th century. Religious paintings are highly decorative and flat while paintings of portraits are conventionalized with an element of reality. Thanks to the artists for their lively and beautiful creation.

Metal-ware

In India, Brass and Copper are used for making various usable objects since ancient time. Tamil Nadu is no exception to this. It has a rich tradition of making metal objects which are used for both religious and secular purposes. A wide variety of objects include standing lamps, aarathi (votive lamps), deepalakshmis, hand lamps and chain lamps. Shallow dishes in circular, hexagonal, octagonal and oval shapes are widely used in Tamil Nadu and are made out of bronze or sheet brass. The popular Thanjavur plates are characterized by designs of deities, birds, flowers, and geometric patterns beaten out from the back of copper and silver sheets and subsequently encrusted on a brass tray, kudam or panchpaathra. Metal toys are also popular and are sold at various gift outlets in various towns and cities of the state.

Woodworks

Tamil Nadu is famous for its artistically created baskets and fiber products which are of great demand both in India and abroad. While palm has become a major source of raw material for basketry and related products, bamboo, cane, grasses, reeds and fibres are also used in making baskets, ropes, mats and many other items. The places famous for these arts are Dharampuri, Salem, Coimbatore, South Arcot and Tiruchirapalli districts.

Stone Carving

Stone carving is a popular form of art continued to exist over centuries. The craftsmen apply their creativity in making sculptors of various forms and structures. Granite and marble carving are confined to the areas around Mamallapuram and Chingleput. The famous sculptors here belong to the Vishwakarma or Kammaalar community. A subsidiary form of carving is soapstone or maakal carving, found in the region between Pondicherry and Cuddalore and around Salem. These sculptors are sold at high prices in national and international markets.

Pottery

Pottery is an important craft of Tamil Nadu. The state is famous for its manufacture of the famous Ayyannar horses. The horses are said to protect each village from evil. The large terracotta horses of Salem and Pudukottai are very much popular and are of great demand.