Thanjavur Painting: Gesso, Gold Foil & Stones

A Studio in the Old Town

Thanjavur painting flourished at the Thanjavur court under the Nayak and Maratha rulers, who filled palaces, temples and homes with luminous panels of Krishna, Ganesha and Lakshmi. Vasanthi Rajendran learnt the craft from her father and paints on the bright verandah of her house a few streets from West Main Street, surrounded by panels at every stage of completion.

Layers That Take Weeks

A Thanjavur panel is built, not just painted. Vasanthi shows you each stage on real boards: a seasoned wooden plank, cotton cloth pasted over it with gum, several coats of chalk powder and gum rubbed smooth into a gesso ground, the sketch, and then the raised relief — a thicker chalk paste built up over crowns, jewellery and pillars so the gold will stand proud of the surface. Because each layer needs days to dry, your 6 × 8 inch board comes with its gesso and relief already prepared in the design you choose.

Gold, Stones and Colour

The heart of the session is gilding. You will cut 22-carat gold foil with a fine blade, lay it over the relief, press it into every curve with a smooth tool and burnish it until it glows. Next come the stones: small semi-precious and coloured glass pieces set into the crown and ornaments. Finally you fill in the deep reds, greens and blues that give the style its jewel-box look, while Vasanthi works the fine dark outlines with you.

Caring for Your Panel

You will learn how to tell genuine gold foil from imitation, why Thanjavur Paintings carry a GI tag, and how to frame your panel and protect it from damp. Vasanthi's own finished works are available to buy at studio prices.