Patachitra at DakshinaChitra

Meet our craftsperson Prakash Kumar Maharana, a master craftsman in palm leaf engraving and patachitra from Puri, Orissa, a place famous for patachitra. These traditional painters are called Chitrakars.

For the palm leaf engraving talpatra or dried palm leaf are used. They are cut into strips and then stitched together with a fine needle. The complete etching is then rubbed over with leaves and black paint. Palm leaf etching is then piano folded and tied with cotton or wool thread.

The Patachitra, as the folk paintings of Orissa is called, has a history of great antiquity. The current pictures have resemblance to the historic murals of that region. The paintings have flourished around great religious centres like Puri, Konarak and Bhubaneshwar.

One can also see the pata painting or a scroll painting on a specially prepared canvas which is a unique contribution of the folk artists to the world of Orissa painting and this folk tradition of pata paintings.

The pata paintings of Orissa have to their credit the aesthetic value of Odissi culture, tradition and the picturesque landscape and they look beautiful when framed and adorning your wall.

In these paintings the immensity of life and the diversity of the divine stand as one. The artistic assimilation of exhilarating colors and a fine aesthetic of design characterize this art.