Chownk : ritual marriage painting

Anil Vangad is from a small Warli tribal village in the state of Maharashtra. His work has been exhibited in India, Europe and the United States. As a child, he was fascinated by watching his mother paint in the traditional way. She later taught him the techniques and instilled respect for his centuries-old roots. Vangad works exclusively with natural materials like rice paste, cow dung and charcoal. He pleads with other Warli painters to do the same and avoid acrylics. Although the tools of trade are are historical, Vangad's perspective is contemporary, documenting his thoughts and observations of modern village life in his paintings.

The Warlis express their beliefs through ritual paintings, once done only by women, twice a year, at the rice harvest or at weddings.

Initially, they were painted on the walls of houses built of red earth and bamboo.

The white color is obtained from rice paste, water and gum and placed using a bamboo stick chewed on its end to give it the flexibility of a brush. These paintings allow you to appreciate the finesse and beauty of this art, little known in the West.