Village of Painters: Narrative Scrolls from West Bengal

Village of Painters profiles the West Bengali village of Naya, a small agricultural outpost that is home to a unique caste of itinerant scroll painters. The Patuas of West Bengal are a traditional artisan caste specializing in the production of painted narrative scrolls and the performance of songs to accompany their unrolling. These artisans have been plying their trade in this region of India at least since the thirteenth century and possibly earlier. The book features a wide range of contemporary scrolls and examines how their makers are keeping the art vibrantly alive in the rapidly changing cultural landscape of West Bengal.