Handpainted – Pattachitra – Durga Mahishasuramardini

Provenance

'Durga Mahishasuramardini' is a Pattachitra painting from Odisha showing the goddess Durga in her victory over the buffalo demon Mahishasura. It is among the most celebrated images in Indian art, and here it is rendered with the bold outlines, flat colour and theatrical framing that characterise the Pattachitra tradition.

Durga, golden-skinned and crowned, rides her white lion with her many arms spread in a fan, holding a trident, a sword, a bow, a conch, a lotus and a discus. She drives the trident into the green-faced demon, who stumbles beneath her in a pink skirt with a raised sword and shield, while the lion bites at his arm. Above them hangs a scalloped canopy of red, green and blue, and a black and white chequered floor runs beneath their feet.

Black, red, yellow and green form a strong, festive palette, with the white of the lion and the pink of the demon's skirt as bright accents. Small white motifs are scattered across the black ground, and a border of red, orange and dark floral bands frames the scene. It is a powerful painting for an entrance, a study or a prayer room.