The Art of Hinduism

The religion of the Hindu's, 'Hinduism', also known by the names of Sanatana-Dharma (eternal religion) and Vaidika-Dharma (religion of the Vedas), is said to be the "oldest of all living religions". With that being taken into consideration, the art behind Hinduism/Indian culture must be endless, and must therefore be a fountain of inspiration for contemporary designers alike.

Hinduism is proclaimed as a very free and open religion, meaning it doesn't/didn't take part in the aniconism displayed in the likes of Chirstianity and Islamic religions, thus allowing us to view and admire many different forms of art which revolve around this laid back religion.

In fact there are 64 traditional arts involved in Hinduism which show use of a variety of skills and crafts, such as:

• Music, painting/sculpting, architecture, creation of colourful patterns, and even the likes of cooking, singing, creating perfumes, applying make-up and flower arranging/caring for trees.

The idea that Hinduism represents so many different activities (cooking, singing, make-up etc) as art forms really reflects how open it is as a religion and I think it's inspiring to see how they acknowledge the things that go into these activities, despite how simple they may be.

Moving away from the variety of arts found in Hinduism, however, I'm going to focus some more on the actual art in the religion, specifically of their many God's and Godessess. As this religion doesn't partake in the aniconism we so often see in other religions, there are many different pieces of art work which revolve around their abundance of higher figures.

The above images portray the God's/Goddesses known as: Vishnu, Ganesh and Shiva. The overall style of these particular pieces is very realistic, which in a sense is ironic considering the art work is depicting incredibly surreal scenes. However, this sense of surrealism allows the use of exotic colours and imagery to really make an impact on the viewer, reflecting the budding beauty and possibilities Hinduism (as a religion) seems to posess, allowing said viewer to fully look up to and admire these God's and Goddesses. Each of the three pictures illustrate very lush and sublime backgrounds, suggesting the idea that the religion is one which connects with nature, and both Vishnu and Ganesh are shown to be stood atop the lotus flower, a flower which represent the likes of beauty, fertility, prosperity, spirituality, and eternity in this particular religion. All of these things make both the artwork and the religion appear rich in a certain array of positive qualities, and it's satisfying to know that Hinduism allows us a glimpse into their beautiful culture and to even take aspects of it to make our own.

Due to the fact that Hinduism grants access to people who aren't of that religion and allows its many aspects to be recreated by contemporary means, it's interesting to see the adaptations of outsiders whom find inspiration and influence from this religion. For example:

This contemporary and rather abstract illustration of Vishnu was created by Sanjay Patel, a Pixar artist and animator. If we compare this to the previous piece of artwork portraying Vishnu, it's obvious that the differences are vast. This design is clearly more modern and will appeal to a greater, contemporary audience and it's for this particular reason I believe that this type of freedom within a religion is important. After all, it allows more interest to be shown from those not involved and this type of curiosity often leads to more participation, bringing in more followers.

Sources used:

• http://hinduonline.co/
• http://www.lotusflowermeaning.net/
• http://www.asiancontemporarysf.org/events/deities-demons-and-dudes-with-staches-indian-avatars-by-sanjay-patel/

Past Influences

Art has existed for an unimaginable amount of time, dating back to the likes of prehistoric eras (Stone age/Bronze age) in which 'men' would scrawl on cave walls with anything that would make a mark, telling an array of stories/messages we're still trying to decipher today. The Lascaux caves in France displays some wonderful examples of such cave paintings, and although it has been closed to the public, the caves can be viewed in animation form in this video:

http://www.lascaux.culture.fr/?lng=en#/fr/02_00.xml

There are also other artifacts, such as the Tartaria tablets (5500 bce), Hieroglyphics (2700 bce), and Ancient Greek pottery (600 - 450 bce), which help reflect the idea of art in the past, and show clear influence over many contemporary designers in today's society.

One specific artist who is particularly inspired by the likes of the Art Nouveau, Pre-Raphaelites, Neoclassical and Victorian artists is a Croatian artist by the name of Natasa Ilincic. Many of her pieces are depictions of old God's, and at times her style, composition and use of intricate pattern put me in mind of the Czech decorative artist Alphonse Mucha, for example:

This particular piece follows the same distinct classical composition that Mucha usually displays in his own pieces, showing a decorative, patterned background and a figure protruding out of the design work as the main focus. Her intricate use of line work is also similar to Mucha's in the sense that the outline is much bolder than any line work used to add detail, creating an odd sense of perspective within the flat image. Clearly, past influence has played a large role in the creation of this more modern piece.

Another artist which appears to be influenced by the Art Nouveau movement/Alphonse Mucha is New York illustrator Les Katz with her Marilyn Monroe painting:

Although this piece appears more typically like a fine-art painting over Mucha's borderline fine-art/graphic design displays, it's evident there has been some influence from his work involved. For example, the composition involves the typical feminine figure placed in front of an intricate, circular design. Despite the medium appearing to differ from Mucha's, the use of colours also appear similar in the sense that they're very soft and blend easily with one another, creating a seamless transition between the highlights and shadows of the piece. As a whole I really like how this piece shows clear influence from Mucha's art style - yet it still differs in its own respect and remains a piece in itself without being a complete mimic of another artist's style (something I find very admirable as it's very easy to just 'copy' a style).

Milton Glaser is a graphics designer highly regarded in the United States, and whilst browsing through his work done for clients and taking in his array of styles, I noticed one piece of work in particular:

The designs of the labels caught my attention as they reminded me specifically of artwork seen on Grecian pottery and in Ancient Egyptian times. If we look at this image taken from a Grecian vase:

and compare it to Milton's wine labels, it becomes evident that there are notable similarities between the two. The first thing I noticed about Milton's designs was the style of the heads. especially the side profile depicted on the first wine bottle. There are striking similarities between that and the one displayed on the vase (right down to the shape of the nose), showing unmistakable signs of past influences over contemporary design. Even things such as the subdued, earthy tones and the type of lines used reflect artwork from past Grecian/Egyptian times.

Pablo Picasso was also an artist who was heavily influenced by past artifacts, especially African styled masks.

As you can see by the image above there are several obvious similarities which tie both pieces together. Picasso's Head of a Woman (1907) shows clear use of the exaggerated features depicted in the dan mask, creating a rather grotesque, abstract image. There is also use of earthy tones, reflecting the original browns in the mask, and even the textures appear similar. If you look at the shape of the woman's head in Picasso's piece it also becomes apparent that it's the exact same shape as the mask, only inverted.

So it becomes clear that past influences are inevitable, they're perceptible in all kinds of work and we, as contemporary artists and designers, are continuously drawing inspiration from a wide variety of things we've previously seen, whether it's a subconscious act or a conscious one.

Sources used:

• http://natasailincic.tumblr.com/
• http://www.graphic-design.com/DTG/Design/nouveau/nouveau2.html
• http://www.miltonglaser.com/the-work/c:packaging/507/restaurant-7-portes-wine-labels/
• http://www.beazley.ox.ac.uk/tools/pottery/painters/keypieces/redfigure/meidias.htm