Fine Art in Ancient India

In the second century B.C., during the rules of Kushana dynasty, a number of schools of fine arts grew up in India and the world.

In central Asia, the local Bactrian school flourished; its works showed marked secular traits; in North-Western India there was the Gandhara School, in Ganges valley, the Mathura school and that of Amaravathi, in South India.

A variety of outside influences can be discerned in Gandhara sculpture- Greek, Roman, Central Asian and it also has a strong Buddhist flavor. Some scholars suggested that sculptures of the Gandhara School were the work of Hellenized Indians, while others even held that they were the work of Roman craftsmen. Although the western influence is indeed conspicuous here, the main source of inspiration for these sculptures came from local traditions. Buddha depicted in the image of man appears very early in Gandhara sculpture. Prior to this Buddha had been depicted by means of various symbols: a wheel, a throne, the Bodhi tree etc. It is possible that this was the result of the influence of Mahayana ideas.

In some statues of Buddha, the scholars point to what they see as the unmistakable influence of Apollo of the Belvedere but many features of the Buddha as depicted by this school were based on purely local traditions. The material used was different and also the purposes for which sculptures were used. As a rule in India, sculptures were an integral part of a particular building or other. The subjects were Indian but there is no doubt that many of the techniques used were Greek, in inspiration. In the words of certain art historians a Gandhara sculptor had an Indian heart and Greek hands. Gandhara traditions in the world of sculpture exerted a major influence over fine arts in many countries of Central Asia and the Far East.

The Mathura school was highly original. A considerable proportion of the works produced here were on secular themes. The figures of Buddha from Mathura create an earthly image of the preacher, but hints of certain aloofness already make themselves felt at this stage.

The Amaravathi sculpture provides, as it were the complement to the Buddhist stupa built in the second century A.D. Here, scenes dealing with the life Buddha are depicted but the whole tone of the sculptures is strictly local, conveying the specific principles underlying the artistic canon of that particular school. Here, the influence of the artistic tradition of the North also makes itself felt.

Apart from religious works, the so-called semi-secular and secular sculpture also made definite advances during these periods. This age marked an important stage in the development of ancient Indian painting. The frescoes of Ajanta are true masterpieces.