• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Go to Expat Living Hong Kong
Get our Newsletter

Lifestyle Guide To Moving To & Living in Singapore - Expat Living HomepageLifestyle Guide To Moving To & Living in Singapore - Expat Living

Moving to Singapore and not sure where to start? Expat Living is the essential lifestyle guide to living in Singapore.

Login Pelcro Shop

Menu
  • Living in Singapore
      • Living here
      • Neighbourhood Guides
      • Schools
      • Property
      • Work & Finance
      • For Guys
      • Environment
      • Readers’ Choice Awards
        • Moving house? Get your Wi-Fi connection right!
        • earth hour festival earth hour Singapore WWF SingaporeSwitch Off for Earth Hour by WWF Singapore
        • Lydia Ko plays golf tournament in singaporeWatch a women’s golf battle for the Team Series title!
        • real estate in united states owning property in USOwning Real Estate in the United States
      • View all
    Close
  • Things To Do
      • Things to do
      • EL Events
      • Calendar
      • Competitions
      • Noticeboard
        • Elke & man k9 empawer walkWhat’s on this week and beyond
        • St Patrick's Day 2023 - irish pubs and drinking spotsSt Patrick’s Day: Great bars to celebrate at
        • Lydia Ko plays golf tournament in singaporeWatch a women’s golf battle for the Team Series title!
        • 10 places for teenagers to hang out in Singapore
      • View all
    Close
  • Kids
      • Enrichment
      • Kids Things To Do
      • Mums & Babies
      • Schools
      • Tots & Toddlers
      • Tweens & Teens
        • 10 places for teenagers to hang out in Singapore
        • Mental health support for toddlers to teens
        • Fun obstacle course in Singapore for kids and adultsHomeTeamNS challenges you to the ultimate obstacle course!
        • education system in Singapore Astor international schoolAstor: Small Singapore school with big impact
      • View all
    Close
  • Homes
      • Home Decor
      • Readers’ Homes
      • Furniture
        • Bedrooms: Bed frames, bedding & bedside tables!
        • Beautiful interior design by Arete CultureNeed decorators, home stylists or interior designers?
        • Affordable art in SingaporeBuying affordable art in Singapore – it is possible!
        • Where to buy a really good bed and mattress in Singapore
      • View all
    Close
  • Travel
      • Asia
      • Australia & New Zealand
      • Rest Of World
      • News
      • Travel Offers
        • property in sydneyBuying property in Sydney
        • international health insurance for singapore expatsHealth insurance for Singapore expats
        • Travel News & Hotel Deals
        • Chloe from E&A InteriorsBuilding a holiday villa in Sri Lanka from start to finish!
      • View all
    Close
  • Wine & Dine
      • Asian Cuisine
      • Western Cuisine
      • Bars & Clubs
      • Groceries & Speciality Services
      • Recipes & Classes
        • crab bee hoon singapore recipeAll you need to know about crab bee hoon in Singapore
        • local desserts in singapore - Rainbow ice cream breadMust-try local desserts in Singapore
        • St Patrick's Day 2023 - irish pubs and drinking spotsSt Patrick’s Day: Great bars to celebrate at
        • Best Restaurants in Singapore – Where to eat for foodies!
      • View all
    Close
  • Style & Beauty
      • Fashion
      • Hair & Beauty
      • Beauty Offers
        • hairdressers in singaporeBest Hair Salons in Singapore for Haircut & Style
        • Best facial in Singapore? Read our beauty salon reviews
        • Niessing gold jewellery in SingaporeI discovered a 150-year-old jeweller in Singapore!
        • Boutique Fairs Singapore fairs in Singapore6 New brands at the Spring edition of Boutique Fairs Singapore!
      • View all
    Close
  • Health & Fitness
      • Dental
      • Fitness
      • Medical
      • Wellness
        • Here’s why sleep is so important
        • core exercises in singapore7 Singapore Pilates studios for core exercises & more!
        • at-home personal training yoga in singaporeYoga classes in Singapore, and the benefits!
        • Here’s what inspires a top urologist in Singapore
      • View all
    Close
  • Shop
    • PRINT MAGAZINE
    • DIGITAL MAGAZINE
    • BOOKS
    • Close

How an exhibition in Singapore is reviving ancient art

1st March 2023 by Megan Hobson 3 Min Read

https://expatliving.sg/exhibition-in-singapore-revives-indian-art-tapestry-and-painting-on-fabric/

If you haven’t heard, Indian Pichvai or Pichwai paintings are making a comeback! These ancient paintings on fabric are growing in popularity with new contemporary interpretations emerging. To celebrate the revival of the heritage art from India, 7 Stories group have curated a free art exhibition in Singapore. Pichvai Tradition and Beyond showcases the glamour and beauty of Indian paintings on fabric. Proceeds will be donated to charities in Singapore and elsehwere in Asia.

Behind the global movement to give Pichvai life again is cultural and heritage activist Pooja Singhal. We asked Pooja and the 7 Stories team what we can expect from the touring exhibition, which is stopping in Singapore before it heads to London.

What is Pichvai art?

A Pichvai is a luxuriously detailed hand-painted textile, traditionally hung behind the idol of Shrinathji, an incarnation of Lord Krishna. This deceptively simple painting style hides layers of spiritual significance, symbolism and varied visual imagery. These artworks from India depict the many seasons and moods of Lord Krishna.

What are some highlights of the art exhibition in Singapore?

The exhibition traces the journey from 400-year-old art from India to reinterpretations today. Pichvai Tradition and Beyond walks you through various stages of Pichvais, highlighting techniques, materials and practices from the past and the modern day.

Visitors can expect to see the best of the traditional works in all their elaborate glory, as well as contemporary interpretations. The colourful paintings feature multiple events, festivals, adornments and offerings all on one large piece of cloth.

Pichwai paintings art exhibition in Singapore

Temple Maps

The highlight of the exhibition in Singapore is a 400-year-old architectural map. The painting provides an aerial view of a temple with elements depicted in two- and three-dimensional forms. Atelier Tradition & Beyond has reworked and reinterpreted this composition in various ways. The result gives new meaning to this ancient Indian art.

Other temple maps use cloth and paper mediums to present varying sized Pichvais of Shrinathji’s haveli and visual representations of the town of Nathdwar. The haveli comprises a maze of streets and architecture. This genre is widely popular among devotees as these Indian paintings on fabric recreate the experience of Shrinathji’s darshan. It’s believed among the devotees of the Pushtimarg sect that the viewer can experience parikrama from these haveli Pichvais. Parikrama is a holy circumambulation of a sacred spot by a darshan.

Painting on fabric tapestry

Lotus Pichvais

Introduced in the 18th century, painted lotus Pichvais are typically displayed during the summer months to create a gentle and cool atmosphere in the sanctum of the idol. The repetitive use of lotus motifs on these Pichvais creates the illusion of expansive lotus ponds. Linking to the banks of the river Yamuna, where a young Krishna spent much of his time, these Pichvais aim is to evoke emotions connecting devotees to the idol, which is one of the highest spiritual pursuits of the sect.

What makes Pichvai a unique and interesting art style?

The subject of this traditional temple art from India is very specific, depicting stories from the life of Krishna. However, the most distinctive part of a pichvai is the riot of colours and bright elements that create a beautiful artwork.

The Indian artworks are painted on cotton or cotton silk cloth and lined with a starch paste. This provides a base for the artists to use stone colours ground with a mortar and pestle. The artists also generously use gold and silver in each work, usually to adorn lord Krishna.

The beauty of Pichvai comes from the way the stone colours react with the cotton silk cloth. In addition, artists use squirrel-hair brushes to create a final outline, detailing every small story, form and figure. The use of gold in the headgear of the idol along with the tiny dots that the artists use for the elaborate jewels, also gives Pichvai paintings a unique look and feel.

tapestry art from india

How are Pichvai artworks appealing to contemporary audiences?

Over the past few years, Pooja Singhal has created an initiative reimagining and reworking the layered historical styles of Pichvai. Her Tradition and Beyond studio atelier provides new Pichvai formats and themes suited to a wider audience. This has led to a whole new body of works called Grayscale, reimagining colourful Pichvai paintings in a black and white photograph style. She has also inspired the creation of decorative miniature paintings, where artists have painted large eight-foot Pichvais on small papers. The result brings an intensity and scale more fitting in today’s times, and showcased in this art exhibition in Singapore.

Unencumbered by the weight of tradition, this creates supremely skilled painters that keep Pichvai alive by merging traditional techniques with contemporary application and also ingenuity.

Pichvai Tradition and Beyond in collaboration with 7 Stories will be at the Art Porters Gallery in Singapore from 16 to 19 March 2023. Entry to the exhibition in Singapore is free.

For more details about Pichvai Tradition and Beyond, visit the exhibition website.

 

Get the latest events, stories and special offers sent to your inbox
Get the latest events, stories and special offers sent to your inbox

Categories: Art & Culture Living here Living in Singapore Things To Do Tags: 7 Stories Art Exhibition art exhibition in singapore Art Porters Gallery Indian art Pichvai Tradition and Beyond traditional Indian art

Megan Hobson

You May Also Like

Let’s take a walk around Little India!

Festivals in Singapore

Music, dance and art festivals!

Lotus painting art classes in Singapore

6 great art and craft classes to try

Primary Sidebar

  • Competitions
  • Noticeboard
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • advertise
  • Contact
  • Privacy

© 2023 Expat Living Singapore, All Rights Reserved.