Benoy K Behl The ancient Indian treatise on painting, the Chitrasutra of the Vishnudharmottara Purana states that paintings which are made with an understanding of the harmony of life have a beneficial influence upon the onlooker. It is this deep understanding and vision of life which ancient Indian art shares with us. The paintings in […]Read More
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Benoy K Behl In the high Himalayan mountains is the verdant valley of Kashmir. Amidst its great natural beauty, the thoughts of man have constantly turned to the wonder of creation. Since early times, Kashmir has been a renowned centre of Hindu and Buddhist philosophy. It is here that the Indian philosophy of aesthetics was […]Read More
Benoy K Behl In the 13th century, in Odisha on the eastern coast of India, was made a grand temple dedicated to Surya, the Sun. It was the tallest and most magnificent temple made in India, the climax of 800 years of building structural stone temples. It was built by King Narasimhamahadeva I of the […]Read More
Benoy K Behl After over a thousand years of rock-cut shrines in India, structural stone temples, in grand and developed styles, were made by the 8th century. The southern form was seen in Tamil Nadu under the Pallavas. Under the early Western Chalukyas, both southern and northern forms were seen at Pattadakal and Alampur. In […]Read More
Benoy K Behl The Indian temple is conceived as a place for the self-transformation of the devotee. A place where the noise and confusion of the material world are left behind. Where in the sanctified silence, one may gain the knowledge of the oneness of all of creation. The temple and the sculpture upon it […]Read More
Benoy K Behl The 7th and 8th centuries at Mamallapuram are a remarkable time. The humanistic and naturalistic qualities of ancient art are continued here in the rock-cut sculpture. At the same time, we see here the beginning of structural temples. At Mamallapuram, we also see the start of royal patronage of temple-building and the […]Read More
Bonoy K Behl From the 1st century onwards in India, the human form became the main embodiment of philosophic concepts. These exquisite forms were made to move us and to transport us beyond our worldly concerns, to that which was more important. Temples were conceived as homes for the deity: where the formless eternal takes […]Read More
Benoy K Behl The fertile valley of the Krishna River was the cradle of civilisation in the Eastern Deccan. By this time, it had become famous in the world for its fine textiles, particularly of cotton. There was a flourishing trade with Rome and large quantities of Roman coins have been found here. This area […]Read More
Benoy K Behl It was the 2nd century BCE, the Shunga period in Indian art. Great Buddhist stupas were being made at Bharhut and Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh. Motifs and traditions which were to prevail in Indian art were being established here. In the meantime, another great chapter of art was opening in Western India. […]Read More
Benoy K Behl The early art of India is a valuable record of the thoughts and the vision of one of the most ancient civilisations in the world. This ancient art brings before us a view of the world which sees a great harmony in the whole of creation. It sees the same which is […]Read More