A Short History of Printed Art

The oldest and most well-known graphic art prints were first produced by woodcut printing. The Chinese were the first to make religious woodcut prints though they never became prominent print designers. The Japanese learned wood cutting and woodcarving techniques from the Chinese and Koreans and went on to produce some of the most prized prints today. The first of these prints were created in black and white and decades later, the Japanese began printing in three colors. At around 1700, they began to use eight to 11 blocks of colors to produce more sophisticated works. One of the big differences between Western and Oriental woodcut art is the way that changes of shade are achieved. For example, in the East, the watercolor is brushed on the surface of the wood block like in a painting, while in the West, shading is achieved by the increasing the degree of engraving and the depth of the designs carved in the wood block.

In Europe during the Middle Ages, woodcuts were primarily used to make fabric designs. Playing cards and religious pictures were also the first products of European printers. After the invention of movable type, history books and Bibles began to be filled with woodcut illustrations.

There are three main methods of making prints. The oldest one is the relief method where the print is carved on a raised surface. Woodcuts are the most popular form of relief painting. It could be tedious because the artist would first get a block of wood and cut away the background from this design. The design was then slowly inked and printed.

The second printing method is called "intaglio" and is the opposite of relief printing. In "intaglio", the print is made from the lines of areas which have been cut or burned away. After the drawing has been carved on a metal plate, the plate is covered with ink. Damp paper is placed on the top of the plate and when the paper and plates are run through the press, the paper he lifts the ink from the lines.

A third method is known as the planographic process. Lithography is the most common type of planographic printing. Slabs of limestone are the most commonly used materials, although lithographs can be made from metal sheets. Lithography was invented in 1796 and was primarily used as a cheap method to produce music sheets. The lithograph first won popularity in France because it was less complicated and cheaper to use than woodcuts and was better suited to mass production. Europeans started to use it as a means to print political propaganda, wall decorations and book illustrations.

The invention of photography ended the use of prints to produce paintings and reproductions. Silk screen also became one of the more popular ways to produce mass prints. Most 20th-century artists have attempted to make prints. Prints are so seldom used today because they are no longer are created for mass-produced publications. So today, a print, whether carved, etched, designed, or printed by the artist himself, is now acknowledged as a precious work of art. But unlike a painting of which there is only one "original", a print can yield up to 50 originals. For this reason, an artist's print can usually cost less than one of his original paintings. However, many great art collections and galleries have been started with the purchase of a single print.

Michael Russell Your Independent guide to Arts [http://arts-guide.com]

Majolica 1 - History and Evolution

The Majolica method of painting ceramics developed from luster which is one of the oldest and most beautiful ways of decorating ceramics. The two basic differences are that luster needed pure metals to create the colors and had to be fired at a lower temperature, between 500º C and 700º C. The metals used were gold, silver, tin, platinum, and copper. Silver and copper created brown, orange and red. Reds sometimes appeared so dark as to look black.

What makes Majolica different from other methods is that an opaque, white glaze-base is laid on to bisque, already fired clay, this is painted with ceramic colors and the two are then fired together. This integrates the colors that touch to form another color, gives shading and perspective. What has been painted cannot be altered, so every brush stroke must be correct. To repair you have to scrape off what is incorrect, then add more base and colors, it will never be exactly the same and when fired the differences can be seen and will spoil your work. When you see the magnificent murals painted in the past you realize what superb artists and craftsmen they were.

The following is a simple explanation of the method of working. Two firings are needed, the first one being to fire the clay. When the temperature reaches 600º C it becomes a ceramic product but for commercial use it has to be fired to a higher temperature and becomes a material that is solid, breakable but still porous known as bisque. For the second firing the bisque fired pieces are covered with a layer of a white opaque glaze-base, which can be applied by throwing, dipping or spraying. When dry the glaze-base is cleaned off the footings of plates, jars and lids and the edgings and backs of tiles and the trademark is painted on. The prepared designs, which have been drawn and pounced, are marked onto the glaze-base with vegetable ash, after which the pieces are decorated with colors. When finished the glaze-base and decoration are fired together and vitrify at 980º C. This process turns the glaze-base into an opaque layer of glass which prevents the bisque from being porous and leaves a shiny, smooth surface that enhances the lines, colors and quality of the decoration.

The Arabs conquered Spain in 714 AD, but the technical knowledge in luster did not reach Spain until two centuries later. It was first made in Malaga which was the main port in Spain for the Arab kingdom whose capital was Granada. By the 13th century, luster was well established in Malaga, which was famous for its red-yellow-gold pots and plates. At first it was made for the Arab nobility, but it then became an important export shipped to Barcelona, Italy, France, Damascus, and England. With the start of the economic decline of the Arab settlement, the making of luster moved to Valencia, which by the end of the 14th century had become the center for ceramics still using the same production methods.

The method of working was changing and evolving, new ways of making colors were found without having to use expensive metals, so work became cheaper, quicker and needed a higher temperature for firing. The new method was called the Majolica Method. Plates, pots, tiles for walls, floors, and ceilings were all being produced using blue-a popular and predominant color. The word azulejo, which means tile in Spanish, originates from this tradition. Azul means blue and lejos means far off. Today, azulejo means tile and, translated literally, means blue-distance-a color to be seen from far off. It became an illustrated method of informing the illiterate public; decorations on church walls told Bible stories; chemists' pots depicted plants and their Latin names; tiles showed craftsmen and workmen doing everyday jobs; the process of making wine, bread, oil, and many other specialties was shown.

Italy had been importing luster from Spain for several centuries but in the 15th century started to produce ware in the towns of Deruta and Gubbio. To start with, they were greatly influenced by the Valencia style, leaving the background white and using similar figures, animals and borders but they gradually developed, creating beautiful and different designs and colors. Using a dark-colored background and the colors in a much more subtle way, the Italians became perfectionists in their work, in contrast to the more free and liberal brush-strokes used in Spain. The method spread to other parts of Europe in the 16th century: to Holland where it is known as Delft, France as Faience and then to England in the 17th century, where production lasted about one hundred and fifty years and was known by the name of Lambeth and now is known as Majolica.

They were making jars, plates, statues and tiles. The industry sprang up in many parts of England, the main town being Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. The first World Industrial Fair was in London in 1851; it was an international success and influenced all the crafts, in industrial and artistic ways, showing new designs and methods of working. Production lasted until about 1910 and now every piece made during this period has become a trophy for the collectors.

What is sad is that the use of this method of decorating is dying; you now cannot start to work and learn at 13 years old and if you study ceramics and painting, drawing with a paint brush, these are now two completely different subjects. Painting in the Majolica method is a specialty in itself; you have to learn to move the paint brush to control both the shape of the brush stroke and intensity of the color, knowing it cannot be corrected. Now there are very few factories that work using this method and when I say factories I mean human factories where everything is done by hand. The work involved makes the pieces too expensive for everyday use and sadly nowadays very few can afford such a luxury.

I will not bore you with all the problems we have had with tiles, they are explained in my web ceramic dictionary in the section Categories, Tile Problems.

Indian Miniature Painting - History and Techniques

Miniature paintings are one of the many things that make an Indian proud of his country's rich cultural heritage. Miniature paintings originated long back in the history of India. Indian Paintings can be broadly classified as the murals and miniatures. Murals are huge works executed on the walls of solid structures, as in the Ajanta Caves and the Kailashnath temple.

Miniature paintings are executed on a very small scale on perishable material such as paper and cloth. The Palas of Bengal were the pioneers of miniature painting in India. The art of miniature painting reached its glory during the Mughal period. The tradition of miniature paintings was carried forward by the painters of different Rajasthani schools of painting like the Bundi, Kishangarh, Jaipur, Marwar and Mewar. The Ragamala paintings also belong to this school.

Indian miniature paintings are renowned worldwide for their beauty, finesse and impeccable detailing. The history of Indian Miniature Paintings can be traced to the 6-7th century AD, the time, when Kashmiri Miniatures first marked their appearance. Miniature Paintings have evolved over centuries carrying the influence of other cultures. The miniature artists gave self-expression on paper, ivory panels, wooden tablets, leather, marble, cloth and walls.

Indian artists employed multiple perspectives unlike their European counterparts in their paintings. The idea was to convey reality that existed beyond specific vantage point. Some of the special Miniature paintings include illustrated manuscripts of Jains and Buddhists, the flowering of the Mughal, Rajput and Deccan miniatures. Themes used were from Indian epics like Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagvata Purana, Rasikpriya, Rasamanjiri as well as ragas of Indian classical music, etc.

A miniature painting, as the name signifies, is an intricate, colorful illuminations or painting, small in size, executed meticulously with delicate brushwork. The colors used in miniatures are generally derived from natural sources and materials. Some of the paintings use pure gold and other precious gems and stones to extract the colors for beautifying these miniature paintings. India has a long and varied tradition of miniature paintings.

Themes of Miniature Art Paintings.

After the Mughal reign, which lasted 200 years, by the second part of the 18th century, the Rajput Maharajahs became independent. They employed these highly skilled artists to replace their own artisans, leading to a sort of painting renaissance in northern India. The whole of Rajasthan divided into numerous princely states, patronized miniature art painting. These states had evolved a characteristic style of their own.The paintings of this era have their own unique style, being influenced by the surroundings- the deserts, lakes, hills and valleys, as the case may.Colorful glimpses of history are provided by these paintings depicting hunting and court scenes, festivals, processions, animal and bird life, and scenes from the Raagmala and Raaslila -- Lord Krishna´s life story. Also, courtly lavishness and prosperity have been displayed.

Mughal painting

Mughal painting is a particular style of Indian painting, generally confined to illustrations on the book and done in miniatures, and which emerged, developed and took shape during the period of the Mughal Empire 16th -19th centuries). Mughal paintings were a unique blend of Indian, Persian and Islamic styles. Because the Mughal kings wanted visual records of their deeds as hunters and conquerors, their artists accompanied them on military expeditions or missions of state, or recorded their prowess as animal slayers, or depicted them in the great dynastic ceremonies of marriages...The painters focused mostly on court scenes, royal portraits, natural scenes and landscapes.

Akbar (1556-1605) was the one who started encouraging of Mughal artist. After he had consolidated his political power, he built a new capital at Fatehpur Sikri where he collected artists from India and Persia. More than a hundred painters were employed, most of whom were Hindus from Gujarat, Gwalior and Kashmir. They worked under the two Persian master-artists Abdus Samad and Mir Sayyid Ali, but they were encouraged and inspired by Akbar.

After him, Jehangir encouraged artists to paint portraits and durbar scenes. His most talented portrait painters were Abul Hasan and Bishan Das. Shah Jahan (1627-1658) continued the patronage of painting. Some of the famous artists of the period were Mohammad Faqirullah Khan, Mir Hashim, Muhammad Nadir, Bichitr, Chitarman, Anupchhatar, Manohar and Honhar. Aurangzeb had no taste for fine arts. Due to lack of patronage artists migrated to Hyderabad in the Deccan and to the Hindu states of Rajasthan in search of new patrons.

Rajput painting

The Rajput School of Miniature Painting imbibed inspiration from the Krishna legends. The emphasis was more on the man and woman relationship and paintings were aesthetic portrayal of their emotion, love and passion. The lovemaking scenes of Lord Krishna and Goddess Radha are some of the finest specimens of the paintings. Rajput painting, a style of Indian painting, evolved and flourished, during the 18th century, in the royal courts of Rajputana, India. Each Rajput kingdom evolved a distinct style, but with certain common features.

Rajput paintings depict a number of themes, events of epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, Krishna's life, beautiful landscapes, and humans. Miniatures were the preferred medium of Rajput painting, but several manuscripts also contain Rajput paintings, and paintings were even done on the walls of palaces, inner chambers of the forts, havelies, particularly, the havelis of Shekhawat.The colors extracted from certain minerals, plant sources, conch shells, and were even derived by processing precious stones, gold and silver were used. The preparation of desired colors was a lengthy process, sometimes taking weeks. Brushes used were very fine.

Jodhpur School: The centre of this hand made paintings are love scenes then the other art figures. The Jodhpur School of Miniature paintings depict love scenes of lovers Dhola and Maru on camel back. There are hunting scenes with elephants and horses. The major colors used in this style of painting are gold and stone color.

Jaipur School:

Gods and goddesses, kings and durbars are very attractively painted on hand made papers by the artists.

Kangra School:

Real gold, stone, and water colors are squirrel-hair brushes are used. Glittering effect is extended using silver and golden colors.

Mewar School of Painting:

These represent hunting scenes which are painted on cloth and handmade paper using stone colors

Technique of Miniature Paintings:

A high degree of expertise is required as it involves the use of a very fine brush. The strokes should be absolutely perfect as they should be intricate, colorful and rational impressions. The colors used are mainly derived from minerals, vegetables, and precious stones, indigo, conch shells, gold and silver which are obtained through a painstaking process. Paper painting in Miniature art are done on old or new hand made paper of very fine quality that depict Animals, Birds, Butterfly, Mughal themes and more. One can put these as wall hanging decorations. Miniature paintings made of pure marble slabs that feature Mythology, Birds, Turbans, Women and Mughal themes can be used as table tops or wall frames as well. Miniature Painting is painstaking efforts of skill and talent exhibited by Indian artisans. They have been well acclaimed and received by the world all over.

Step 1: Choose a design

Step 2: First draw the required pattern on the trace paper and copy the design into the cloth/paper using carbon sheet

Step3 Now first paint the human figures. Then animals and other components of the picture. The background is painted last. This is to set each area's base color

Step4 This step need fine brushes to beautify the Floors, carpets, human figure with intricate detailing. This also includes techniques like shading, highlighting, washing,

Step 5 Outlines the figures with a darker color and highlight the jewelery and other parts using metallic paints to give an appearance of richness.

Step 6 Burnishing is the last stage. The miniature art painting is laid face down on a hard surface, and an agate stone is used to stroke it firmly. This gives the painting a uniform texture.

To this date, Indian and Mughal Miniature paintings provide an interesting insight into the lifestyles of earlier centuries and continue to fascinate people.

Rahul Chandani is website manager for the website http://www.indianminiature.in It is committed to providing visitors with complete information on Indian Miniature painting History and Techniques including details of different themes.