Bhil paintings are a vibrant and intricate art form created by the Bhil community, native to Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in Western and Central India. Known for their distinctive dot patterns and bright colors, these paintings narrate folklore, traditions like “Bhagoria” (a festival of love and courtship), daily life and deep spiritual beliefs. Bhils use dots to create texture, patterns, and depth making their paintings visually striking. They often depict animals, trees, deities, and ancestral spirits. Traditional colors like red, yellow, blue and green made from natural sources dominate the paintings. Bhil paintings usually consist of large, un-lifelike shapes of everyday characters filled with earthy yet bright colours, covered with an overlay of uniform dots in several patterns and colours that stand out against the background. The dots on a Bhil painting are unique to the work of each artist and represent the artist’s signature style.
Technique and Materials
Beautiful images are painted using handmade brushes with “neem” (Margosa tree or Indian lilac) twigs or bamboo. Natural dyes from turmeric, flour, vegetables, leaves and oil are used to derive brilliant colours that make fascinating frescoes on floors and walls, in a language created by the Bhils, to convey their experiences.
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