Goddess Kali

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Of all the entities in the Hindu pantheon, the Goddess Kali has the most famous iconography. Her portrayal is of a decidedly bloodthirsty goddess, replete with all the spiritual ingredients a devi needs to lord over Shiva-Vishnu-Brahma (the holy trinity) Itself. This oil painting by Anup Gomay depicts Her in Her superlative ferocity, floating in the heavens amidst the fiery rays of the setting sun that doubles as Her halo. The painting cuts down from beneath Her thighs, rendering it a partial image of the Goddess. As such, She seems to be standing within a lifelike, fluid body of lava.

The fervour of the fire that surrounds Her is matched by the stance of each of Her four arms. The right posterior arm weilds an enormous bloodied sickle, the thick dripping red giving away that She has just slayed an adharmee, that the blood is fresh on the blade. The left posterior hand grips the lifeless head of the demon Raktabeej, whose Sanskrit name translates to blood-seed. Raktabeej is arguably the most demonic of the asuras, invincible by virtue of the divinity in each drop of his blood that transforms into a full-blown demon the moment it touchs the earth. Hence, the left anterior hand of the Goddess holds a bowl beneath Raktabeej's bleeding head to collect the powerful blood of the demon. The Devi holds Her right anterior hand up in blessing to Her devotees.

The signature element of Her iconography, the mundmala (Sanskrit for 'cephalic garland') has been painted on Her with great skill, with each head frozen in death and dripping thickly with blood. It is in the ebbing lifeblood of adharmees that She has dipped Her nails and Her long tongue. A purple snake sits coiled around Her waist, who happens to be the very manifestation of Lord Shiva. A skirt of severed human arms, "arguably the earliest mini skirt in history", clothes Her thighs - an offering of karma by her numberless devotees, the karma they have done by hand. The visible part of Her body, the torso, is plump and ripe with fertility and bedecked with the resplendence of ample gold to match: chunky amulets and wristlets, and a thick kamarband, each studded with a plethora of rubies and emeralds. Numberless neckalces cover Her entire torso; some of gracious gold, one of miniscule bones, whist some reach down the entire length of Her torso to Her navel. Note the gorgeous sapphire pendant at the centre, the pearls of its chain strewn delicately atop her full breasts.

The glorious crown, secured along Her hairline with a string of pearls, completes the Goddess Kali's iconography. The glimmer of the embedded jewels on the paisleys puts the sun behind Her to shame. Wisps of luxuriant black tresses caress Her divinely youthful face, adding a touch of the feminine to Her overpowering ferocity. The rest of Her dense Stygian mane flares on both sides of Her, taking up the full horizontal scope of the painting. Her large ears, lengthened by the sheer weight of the thick gold hoops She is wearing, frame Her perfectly round face. Her eyes have the earthy glow of embers; whilst the third is yet shut, toned down by the artist with a subtle pastel tint on the lids. There is no denying the ennervating effect this painting will have on whoever sets eyes on it.

Oil painting technique – India centric

Oil painting is the most interesting technique in art. Unlike other paintings or art forms, oil painting is a process in which colored pigments are painted on the canvas with a drying oil medium as a binder. This medium helps colors blend beautifully to create layers and also makes them appear rich and dense. Several varieties of oil are used in this painting such as sunflower oil, linseed oil, etc., and depending on the quality of the oil, a particular consistency of the paint is developed. With the use of an oil medium, the painting gets a natural sheen on the surface which appears extremely attractive. India is famous for its old tradition of making oil paintings. This art form was brought by Europeans in the 18th century and is now practiced by almost all well-known artists. Nirmal, a small tribal town in the state of Telangana is the center of traditional oil paintings in India where the local people practice it with dedication. Most Indian artists still use the traditional technique of oil painting.

Canvas of the required size is prepared

The artists use either a wood panel or canvas made from linen or cotton. Sometimes the canvas is stretched onto the wooden frame to form a solid base, or cardboard may be used. The canvas is coated with a layer of white paint or chalk mixed with animal glue. This mixture is then smoothed and dried to form a uniform, textured surface. The wooden panel is more expensive and heavier but its solidity is an advantage in making detailed paintings with ease.

Sketch is drawn on the canvas

Now the artist starts to draw the subject of the painting on the canvas using the actual charcoal or a charcoal pencil. Sometimes, he may sketch with thinned paint as well.

Oil paint is applied using paint brushes or palette knives

Now that the rough sketch is prepared, the artist is now ready to paint. Oil paint, a special paint that contains particles of pigments suspended in a drying oil (usually linseed oil), is again mixed with oil to make it thinner for applying it on the canvas. Proper consistency of the paint is maintained to avoid its breakage. The most important rule for the application of oil paint is “Fat over lean” in which the first layer of paint is thin and later, thicker layers are applied. This means that each additional layer of paint contains more oil. This results in getting a stable paint film. Traditionally, paint was applied using paint brushes but now the artists also use palette knives to create crisp strokes. To paint using this technique, the edge of the palette knife is used to create textured strokes that appear different from that of a paintbrush. Sometimes, oil paints are blended simply using fingers for getting the desired gradation.

Smaller oil paintings, with very fine detail, are relatively easier to paint than larger ones. The most attractive feature of these paintings is the natural shiny appearance that is obtained on the surface because of the use of oil paint. The blending of colors looks extremely realistic and this is the reason why oil paintings are loved by everyone throughout the world.