Ajanta: The Colour and Monochrome Reproductions of the Ajanta Frescoes Based on Photography v1.c4.40

v1.c4.40

Now turn to Ajanta. Here is the nude body in every attitude and movement. But the forms have not been studied apart and indoors, each for its own sake, to be fitted deliberately into a preconceived design. These are forms seen in the fields, on the highway, by the river bank; familiar from infancy, stored in the unconscious memory. To the Indian artist the unclothed human body is no rare sight, it is a part of his everyday surroundings. And, no doubt, this is a reason why the drawing of the body at Ajanta has such delightful ease and animation. The beautiful ways of the human body in its spontaneous gestures and poses—and, untrammelled by clothing, they are as beautiful as those of animals—are seized with a sure eye and hand. There is no foreshortening too bold for these artists to attempt, and it is done with a straightforward mastery, as if no hard problem were involved. The forms are lithe and active, but with no muscular development. There is a noticeable gentleness in their movements.