Painting during the Gupta period was regarded as a social accomplishment — practising painting was accepted as an art form and closely associated with the social-cultural life of the age. The refined and sophisticated lifestyle of urban elites of the time extended naturally to art forms such as painting, and it is this social and aesthetic context, alongside the surviving murals of Ajanta and Bagh, that makes Gupta period painting a rich and important subject for UPSC History Optional aspirants.
Literary Sources on Gupta Painting
- Contemporary texts contain a large number of references to painting, such as in Vatsyayana’s Kamasutra, where painting is listed as one of the 64 art forms practised during this period — indicating that it was practised on a wide scale, even among common people.
- In the Brihatsamhita, the term “Vajralepa” refers to the method of preparing the ground for a mural, while “Mudraksha” refers to imaginative paintings.
- In Kalidasa’s Meghaduta, there is a reference to painting on rocks.
- The Vishnudharmottara, a supplement to the Vishnu Purana composed around the 7th century CE — the very period when artists were creating the last paintings at Ajanta — gives a detailed account of the theory and practice of painting and refers to earlier works on the subject.
- Painting of this period also shows an expression of depth, through the introduction of the concept of three dimensions, indicating an attempt to make figures stand out from the flat surface.
Murals of Ajanta
- The exquisite sculptures at Ajanta are complemented by beautiful murals on the walls, ceilings, doorframes, and pillars.
Technique and Materials
- The technique of painting used at Ajanta is known as fresco secco.
- A thick layer of mud, mixed with vegetable material, was applied to the rock surface, followed by a thin coat of plaster on top.
- Paintings were then made on this prepared surface using pigments mixed in a glue or gum medium, with brushes likely made of animal hair.
- The artists used and blended six colours:
- white, made from lime, kaolin, and gypsum;
- red and yellow, from ochre;
- black, from soot;
- green, from glauconite (a mineral); and
- blue, from lapis lazuli.
- All these materials, except for lapis lazuli, were locally available in the vicinity of Ajanta.
Scenes Depicted
- Apart from narrative scenes connected with the Buddha, bodhisattvas, and Jatakas — fine scenes related to the birth, life, and death of the Buddha, along with several scenes from Jataka stories — the Ajanta frescoes also depict yakshas, gandharvas, and apsaras.
- Alongside these religious scenes, there are many scenes of everyday life in cities and villages.
- The artists’ deep and sympathetic understanding of nature is evident in their representation of trees, flowers, and animals such as elephants, monkeys, deer, and hares, along with a great variety of decorative patterns.
- In the narrative paintings, episodes flow from and into each other in different directions, without any clear demarcation between scenes.
- Ajanta paintings are not conceived in terms of depth; rather, the figures seem to come forward towards the viewer.
- The artists were familiar with the technique of foreshortening, and their paintings are marked by a “multiple perspective” — objects are painted as if seen simultaneously at eye level, from above, and from below.
- The paintings are marked by a fine balance between the material and the spiritual, with artists using shading and highlighting to great effect, lending certain parts of their compositions a luminous glow.
- The paintings also display some stylistic differences, reflecting the different hands that created them.
Human Figures
- The human figures at Ajanta are slender, well-proportioned, and elegant.
- Women are depicted with narrow waists and full breasts, their faces marked by highly arched eyebrows and elongated, lotiform eyes.
- There is an intricate range of sophisticated costumes, jewellery, and hairstyles on display.
Mural Paintings of the Bagh Caves
- The Bagh caves also contained paintings, though these have practically disappeared over time.
- The characteristics of painting at Bagh include:
- a materialistic expression, depicting contemporary life rather than religious themes;
- a relative lack of expression of spirituality, compared to Ajanta; and
- the portrayal of both human life and animal life.
Conclusion
The paintings of the Gupta period, best exemplified by the murals of Ajanta and the more modest survivals at Bagh, reveal a mature artistic tradition grounded in careful technique, a refined sense of colour and composition, and a deep engagement with both religious narrative and everyday life. Supported by literary references in texts such as the Kamasutra, Brihatsamhita, and Vishnudharmottara, this body of work marks Gupta painting as a high point of ancient Indian art — an essential theme for UPSC History Optional aspirants studying Gupta period art and architecture.
