Mari-Amma: A South Indian Transform of Goddess Durga

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In her South Indian transform as Mari-Amma she is alike multi-armed, usually eight, carrying in them the same attributes as Durga but she enshrines the sanctum completely in the fashion of Padmavati, the South Indian transform of Lakshmi, not Durga-like on a mount. The demon-slayer Durga, the most worshipped divinity of masses in the North, is worshipped primarily as the protector against evil. Mari-Amma, Durga in her South Indian transform, is worshipped primarily for redeeming from fever and pestilence. It is only sometimes that she is worshipped also for defeating enemies, eliminating adversities and absolving from the cycle of birth and death and freeing from the bonds of this material world.

Mari Amma is the transform of Durga’s benign form and her feminine aspects. Unlike Kali’s ferocious, violent and somewhat repulsive form, Durga in her all manifestations, even when charged with great energy she slays demons in the battle-field, is the supreme model of benignity and feminine softness. One of her hands held in the blissful gesture of ‘abhaya’ – granting freedom from fear, is not only an essential aspect of Durga’s iconography but also the essence of her being. Conceived with the same benign look and feminine softness as her ante-model Durga Mari-Amma encapsulates in her being benignity and motherliness in total. This same character of the goddess reflects in her image represented here on this canvas.

Seated with her right leg lying down on one of the three demon-heads, and the left, laid over the right horizontally in semi-yogasana position, the posture known in the iconographical tradition as ‘lalitasana’ – seated revealing great aesthetic beauty, represents the goddess as the model of absolute beauty and ultimate bliss. Though not represented as engaged in battle against demons, she has been conceived as carrying instruments of war and three demon-heads under her feet symbolising her evil-eliminating power. The image of the goddess has not been enshrined in a fire-arch but her seat’s back has been drawn not only with fire-arch like dimensions but is also designed with flames-like forms suggesting that she is the energy incarnate and is its perpetual source. The ‘kirtimukha’ motif that tops the seat’s back, a characteristic feature of South Indian sculptural art and iconography, is symbolic of the auspiciousness that she represents.

The eight-armed goddess Mari Amma is seated in a chair overlaid with a gold-patterned green sheet, a typical South Indian textile. She is carrying in her upper right hand a serpent holding a damaru – small double drum, in its coils, in the left, a noose, in the right hand below the upper-most, a lotus, and in the left, a curved rod, in the right hand below it, a trident, and in the left, a bell, in the normal right hand, a lancelet with a rounded head, and in the left, a coconut. Her image is endowed with well defined features : a sharp nose, wagtail bird-like arched eyes, well trimmed eye-brows, elegantly shaped small lips, rounded cheeks aligning with as rounded a chin, forehead with a lamp’s flame-like looking third eye, and a round face. Resplendent as her image is, Mari Amma has been represented as wearing a gorgeous sari brilliantly coloured in red and woven with gold border and butis on the field. Her blue silk blouse too has its sleeves’ ends defined with rich gold patterns. Heavily bejeweled Mari Amma has, besides the gems studded heavy gold ornaments for ears, neck, breast, waist, arms and feet, also a splendid gold crown inlaid with rubies, emeralds, diamond among others. The crown has been styled like a Vaishnava crown, a feature common to entire divine imagery in South Indian iconography.

This description by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr. Daljeet. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of literature and is the author of numerous books on Indian art and culture. Dr. Daljeet is the curator of the Miniature Painting Gallery, National Museum, New Delhi. They have both collaborated together on a number of books.

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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.