Origins of Form
Indian Sculpture: Materials, Methods & Philosophy
REALM 01 — THE ONTOLOGY OF SCULPTURE
MICRO-REALM 01
The Shilpa Tradition
- Shilpa Shastras (Treatises on art)
- Integration of art, math & ritual
- Sculpture as a sacred science
MICRO-REALM 02
Stone Carving (Lithic)
- Subtractive process (removing material)
- Sandstone, Granite, Schist, Basalt
- Longevity and monumental scale
MICRO-REALM 03
Terracotta Art
- Additive process (baked earth)
- Folk traditions & everyday objects
- Highly malleable before firing
MICRO-REALM 04
Lost-Wax Casting
- Cire Perdue (Bronze/Copper)
- Wax model encased in clay, melted out
- Allows extreme detail and dynamic poses
MICRO-REALM 05
Wood & Ivory
- Perishable organic materials
- Intricate architectural carving (Kerala)
- Luxury items and miniature details
MICRO-REALM 06
Prehistoric Foundations
- Petroglyphs (rock carvings)
- Cupules (hemispherical depressions)
- The earliest human urge to leave a mark
MICRO-REALM 07
Relief vs In-the-Round
- Relief: Projecting from a flat background (Bas/High)
- In-the-round: Freestanding, 3D viewing
- Narrative panels vs isolated deities
MICRO-REALM 08
Aniconic to Iconic
→
- Aniconic: Symbol without human form (Lingam, Footprints)
- Iconic: Anthropomorphic (Human-like) form
- The theological shift in worship
MICRO-REALM 09
Sacred & Secular
- Sacred: Idols for temple sanctums
- Secular: Toys, carts, royal portraiture
- Blurring boundaries in palace architecture
MICRO-REALM 10
The Shilpi Guilds
- Shrenis (Craft Guilds)
- Hereditary knowledge transfer
- Collective, anonymous artistic production
MICRO-REALM 11
Talamana System
- Iconometry (Rules of proportion)
- Tala: Unit of measurement (length of a face)
- Standardized divine beauty
MICRO-REALM 12
Rasa in Stone
- Infusing emotion (Bhava) into rigid material
- Capturing movement (Tribhanga)
- The ultimate test of the master sculptor