The Theory of Citrasutras in Indian Painting: A Critical Re-evaluation of their Uses and Interpretations

by Nardi; Isabella

• ISBN13: 9780415391955
• ISBN10: 0415391954
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781134165230
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-08-31
• Publisher: Routledge
• More Book Details

Summary

The study of technical treatises in the Indian art has increasingly attracted much interest. This work puts forward a critical re-examination of the key Indian concepts of painting described in the Sanskrit treatises, called "citrasutras." In an in-depth and systematic analysis of the texts on the theory of Indian painting, it critically examines the different ways in which the texts have been interpreted and used in the study of Indian painting, and suggests a new approach to reading and understanding their concepts. Contrary to previous publications on the subject, it is argued that the intended use of such texts as a standard of critique largely failed due to a fundamental misconceptualization of the significance of text for Indian painters. This work offers an original, fresh approach to research in this field by drawing on the experiences of painters, who are considered as a valid source of knowledge for our understanding of the "citrasutras," and provides a new conceptual framework for understanding the interlinkages between textual sources and the practice of Indian painting. Filling a significant gap in Indian scholarship, Nardi's study will appeal to those studying Indian painting and Indian art in general.

Author Biography

Isabella Nardi is A.W. Mellon Art History Fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Table of Contents

List of figures	ix
List of tables	xi
Acknowledgements	xiii
Notes on transcription	xv
Abbreviations and editions of major texts	xvii
Introduction	1	(4)
The texts, their translations and interpretation	5	(12)
The traditional Indian concept of painting	17	(20)
Systems of measurement and proportion	37	(27)
Talamana and lambamana systems	64	(23)
Stances, hand and leg postures	87	(21)
Iconography	108	(12)
Colours, plaster, brushes and the process of painting	120	(23)
The theory of rasa	143	(11)
Conclusions	154	(7)
Appendix I: depiction of animals	161	(1)
Appendix II: depiction of designs	162	(1)
Appendix III: depiction of backgrounds	163	(2)
Glossary	165	(6)
Notes	171	(11)
Bibliography	182	(6)
Index	188