Characterised by mythical and folklore motifs, Gond Art hails from Madhya Pradesh and is practised by the Pardhan Gonds. Rooftop’s online art course helps you understand this Indian tribal art form with clear step by step instructions from a master artist. Learn this vibrant art form with the insights of our master artist Venkat Raman Singh Shyam, who has been practicing Gond art for over 4 decades and has harnessed an incredible amount of experience in the traditional art industry. With indepth knowledge and years of experience from one of India’s best Gond artists, you are sure to learn so much more than just paint on a canvas.
Gond painting is a 1,400-year-old tribal art form from central India, known for its intricate patterns and vibrant depictions of nature and folklore. Rooted in cultural storytelling, it has evolved from village murals to a globally admired art style.
Meet our maestro, Shri Venkat Singh Shyam. He is a renowned Gond artist who has been practising and teaching this art form for 35 years. Let's understand Gond art through the maestro’s own words.
Connect with our maestro as you listen to Gond’s rich history and learn about its similarities with Aboriginal arts, the value of patterns, and more.
For this lesson, Venkat Ji runs us through the origins of Gond and talks about the geographical spread of the community that practices Gond.
Venkat Ji introduces two signature patterns that are used in Gond. Learn all about it in this lesson.
In this lesson, the Maestro Venkat Shyam ji will tell us about the process of traditional brush making in Gond.
In Gond culture, colors are very important. Venkat Ji explains how people make colors from nature. They use the Palash flower to get yellow and orange, and its roots to make brown. Ramraj soil is used to make yellow, which is mixed with indigo to create green. He also says that making natural colors is hard today, so many people use artificial ones.
Here, Venkat Shyam Ji simplifies his creative process into five steps and provides a sketch to give learners a brief overview.
For the last lesson of this chapter, Venkat Shyam Ji explains the importance of lines and dots as patterns used in Gond paintings, followed by some enriching examples.
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Born in Sijhora village in the Mandla district of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Venkat Raman Singh Shyam is a veteran Gond artist, who has been practising the fourteen-hundred-year-old art for the last four decades!
Shri Venkat Raman Singh Shyam, before becoming the world-renowned Gond artist, used to work as a signboard painter in Bhopal to make ends meet. Inspired by the works of his uncle, Padma Shri Jangarh Singh Shyam ji, Venkat ji developed a strong affinity towards the artistic traditions of the Gond community. Realising his nephew's potential, Jangarh Singh Shyam ji motivated young Venkat ji to create more artworks, learn new styles, and develop unique concepts.
Venkat Shyam ji started working with the Gond art form at the age of ten and has spent more than forty years today, perfecting the art and becoming one of India's leading contemporary artists. He has established his distinct style and patterns, which have strong meanings associated with them. His signature pattern - the dot and the surrounding semicircles - are symbolic of the supreme God, and the community that lives and flourishes due to the grace of the great deity. The other pattern of the artist is the longer wave design, which symbolises air, that can only be felt by us.
Venkat ji paints and exhibits his Gond artworks with his wife, Saroj Shyam ji, a well-acclaimed artist. Today, they live in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. He is also credited with being the coordinator for the animated movie 'Gond Folktale' by Tara Douglas which won the 'Tallest Story Award' at the Inverness Film Festival of Scotland in 2007. Apart from this, Venkat Shyam has held multiple exhibitions all around the world.
Major Awards:
Selected Exhibitions and Featured Artworks: