tribal art museum-bhopal

CASE STUDY ON
TRIBAL ART MUSEUM

INTRODUCTION
The Museum of Tribal Heritage at Bhopal was commissioned
by the Government of Madhya Pradesh in 2004 since over
30% of the population of the state is tribal. It’s architecture
was informed by their rich culture, evolved over millennia.
The cultural diversity seen in Madhya Pradesh is hard to find
anywhere else. Almost oblivious of political boundaries,
communities living in states’ peripheries, tribal communities
continue linguistic, lifestyle, music and cultural exchanges.
The architecture of the museum, integrates seamlessly into a
continuum, the outside with the inside, the natural with the
human construct, the tribal with the urban and the viewer
with the viewed.

SITE LOCATION
Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum
Shyamala Hills, Bhopal 462002, Madhya Pradesh.
77° 23‘05.16 E
23° 14’04.23 N
1856 FT
LOCATION:-
LONGITUDE:-
LATITUDE:-
ALTITUDE:-

DESIGN FEATURES
The architecture of the Museum is inspired by tribal rhythms,
geometries, materials, forms, aesthetics and spatial consciousness,
these very qualities are now acting as points of inspiration for the
display materials being created by tribal artisans, supported by
anthropologists, sociologists and social workers.
The structure is built of steel tubes, castellated girders, and steel rods
fabricated into intricate trusses. Steel seemed to be a natural choice in
the land & location of ancient Iron Age & Bronze Age civilizations, and
the contemporary truck body building industry.

SIMILAR BUILDING NEAR BY
The State Museum of Bhopal.

SIMILAR BUILDING NEAR BY
The State Museum of Bhopal is amongst the best-designed
museums in India.
The museum has 16 different theme galleries, showcasing the
State's sculptural masterpieces, pre-historic articles and fossils,
excavated objects, epigraphs, manuscripts, paintings, royal
collection, textile, documents, postal stamps, autographs, miniature
paintings, coins, arms and weapons, articles associated with India's
freedom struggle. The museum also has reproductions of the now-destroyed
Buddhist Bagh Cave paintings, 84 rare Jaina bronzes of
the 8th to 11th centuries, Avalokesteshwaras of Lamaism, Saivite
sculptures and miniature paintings showing the graceful lifestyles of
those distant days.

LAND MARK NEAR THE SITE
1.REGIONAL COLLEDGE OF BHOPAL
2.SRC BHARAT SCOUT AND GUIDE M.P.

GALLERY 1
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
The task of establishing this specialty of Madhya Pradesh and
better understanding and display of its multi-dimensional culture
will be accomplished in Gallery -1. The gallery will be arranged in
manner that will leave a deep impact on visitors about Madhya
Pradesh’s multi-pronged cultural presence. Like shoots of banyan
tree spread far and wide and are not confined to some definite
limits, in the same way culture of various tribes of Madhya
Pradesh will be put on display over there. Visitors will directly
observe here as to how cultural offshoots of a tribal community
crawl into other tribes beyond borders of neighboring state.
Pattern of the gallery will be briefly as under:-

GALLERY 1
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
1.A glimpse of Madhya Pradesh’s map will be put up in entire
middle part of the gallery in such a way that a visitor will have
inkling about state’s geographical contours, hills, plateaus, forest
and serpentine path of lifeline Narmada. Despite being map of
Madhya Pradesh, it will give visual effect of an uneven hillock.

GALLERY 1
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
2. A banyan tree will be built amidst this map or hillock. Offshoots
of the banyan tree will be spread up to sky (gallery’s high ceiling)
and surrounding states’ tribal culture (whose glimpse will be
shown on the gallery’s walls) whereas roots will be spread on the
gallery’s floor. This vast tree will be made a via media for various
mediums so that there is no excessive burden despite it being
strong so that gigantic and majestic look of the banyan tree (which
is also state tree and state’s emblem) is maintained.

GALLERY 1
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
3.Geographical presence of all the major tribes living in Madhya
Pradesh will be symbolically shown on the map drawn in the lower
part of the gallery with the help of their important symbols.

GALLERY 1
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
4.Gallery’s vastness and high ceiling motivates for making
innovations and there is scope for it also. A staircase will rise from
a place in the gallery and then join ramps built above around
entire gallery. Visitors will climb up the ramps and have a bird’s eye
view of Madhya Pradesh’s map. They will also feel themselves as a
part of this vast cultural banyan tree.
Down there at the places adjoining walls, there will be various
sculptures etc. showing tribal life and culture of the state and
bordering states, which will help visitors analyze differences and
similarities between both the cultures.

GALLERY 1
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
5.Flag-like maps will be hanged from branches of banyan tree
showing special features/similarities between various tribal
communities. These will be displayed in the form of banners and
scrolls.

GALLERY 2
TRIBAL LIFE
A mammoth container for storing food grains has been built in the
gallery from where one enters gallery -2 from gallery -1. This food
grains container is used in Gond tribal homes for creating a
partition, keeping food grains safe, as a canvas for wall paining
and keeping household things in cavities made on it while the
vacant space in between is used for moving in and out.

GALLERY 2
TRIBAL LIFE
1.Artists from Mandla have painted various images on its walls
with clay and colours , which also give an insight on production of
food grains and the methods a Gond woman uses for keeping the
grains safe. Information about exhibits on various diverse aspects
of tribal culture shown in gallery -2 will be given with the help of
ultramodern mediums and equipments.

GALLERY 2
TRIBAL LIFE
2.It explicit that neither can types of houses of all the tribes of Madhya
Pradesh be shown in the limited area of gallery nor it is desirable in the
context of this museum. Here, only hints are being given about these
houses’ architectural, style-related, behavioral and material features.
Changes underwent by dwellings or homes of these tribal communities
are also being highlighted here. For examples, walls of Baiga dwellings
were earlier made with some strong plant parts or grass. Later, they
started making walls by applying mud on bamboo grills and finally walls
were made of mud and then with bricks. Earlier, leaves were used to
make a thatch followed by some specific types of grass and then with
factory-made English tiles. Analysis of this process of change will also
help understand changes witnessed in tribal areas.

GALLERY 2
TRIBAL LIFE
3.In these dwellings, importance of open courtyard, trees in the
courtyard, presence of cattle in homes like family members is also being
displayed properly. Impression of only outer portion of some houses will
be made while effort will be made to create geographical dimensions of
some houses. For example, dwellings of Bhil tribe are lonely and on
some small hillock and effort is being made here to show a similar look.
Paintings of important household things are also being made. Specialties
of these simple dwellings and natural material used over there like
innumerable possibilities of wood and clay can also being targeted here.

GALLERY 2
TRIBAL LIFE
4.This gallery serves as a courtyard where dwellings of various
tribal communities are adjoining, peeping into each other and
creating each other’s neighborhood. You will enter from the door
of some tribe’s dwelling and come out into some other tribe’s
house and sometimes into a lane of Baiga locality will assure to
take you to a lone hillock of some Bhil dwelling.

GALLERY 3
TRIBAL AESTHETIC
Tribal jewellery and other make-up paraphernalia will be inlaid
between two layers of glasses on the windows of corridors from
where one enters this aesthetically decorated gallery. In a sense, it
will be a lattice made from jewelry and cosmetics. The gallery will
also have wooden or terracotta mannequins with tattoo marks.
The first canvas for expression of art is, perhaps, the human body.
Therefore, its use for displaying various hues of adornments on
human body seems justified at the entry point of aesthetics.

GALLERY 3
TRIBAL AESTHETIC
1.As pointed out earlier, there no such thing as art separately in
tribal life. But if look inversely, not even simplest of things like
broom or sil-batta (grinding stone) are not untouched by
aesthetics. Under these circumstances, it is difficult to decide what
to include and what to leave. Therefore, we have set a target to
collect rituals of life cycle and songs of season cycle in aesthetics
gallery. There is a marriage canopy in the midst of gallery, which
will be under the shades of four vast trees, each having
identification emblem of four different tribes. It will be more
appropriate to say that myths about origination of nature will
bless marriage, which is symbol of completeness and continuity of
life.

GALLERY 3
TRIBAL AESTHETIC
2.Efforts are being made to provide opportunities to witness all the hues and gallery
from all angles from below or above in one way or other. Two levels are being built in
the marriage canopy being created in the midst of the gallery so that visitor can see
not only marriage rituals and symbols ingrained on trees, but will also have an overall
minute view of entire gallery. At one door of the gallery, terracotta images depicting
Bhil death rituals and concept of world of the dead. These images are dedicated to
souls of the dead persons and in a sense this a short-term habitat for these souls.
These terracotta images are generally installed on ground. But idea behind their
installation here has been conceived with a view to giving opportunity to viewers to
understand its basic concept with a different angle. It is as if we are watching this
world of the dead from any other plain or the Earth from any other planet. There is
also a possibility to watch this world of the dead moving in the space like a
constellation. There is concept of a separate world for the dead in Bhil and Bhilal
myths. Invitation is extended to these dead persons in specific language of the dead
called “Muruwa” on special occasions. Earthen lamps are also placed on these images
on special occasion, which will be arranged in the gallery with lighting arrangements.

GALLERY 3
TRIBAL AESTHETIC
3.On the occasion of marriage, new daughter-in-law is given brass
bracelet or ring in tribal communities on which symbols of productively
like well/stairwell/ploughing pair of bullocks/farmer/field etc are
ingrained. This bracelet is very small and is not worn. She keep the
bracelet in her hand at the time of preparing seeds. A large image of this
bracelet has been made in the gallery. Besides marriage, rituals
pertaining to birth of children and death of people will also be shown in
totality in the gallery. Here, folklores linked to these, rituals and rites,
and all and aspects of its process through physical things will be seen
and understood.

GALLERY 3
TRIBAL AESTHETIC
4.Efforts will also be made to give concrete shape to tribal festivals and
events related to seasons and cultivation, dances, songs and attires
linked to them. Process is also underway to develop enlarged images of
Bhils’ myths about making percussion instruments, Gonds’ myth about
Badadev residing in Saja tree and making of a percussion instrument
called “Bana” from the same tree to appease Badadev. Hollow of a dried
tree trunk is being used to give impression of a large dried up tree. It will
offer a better opportunity to understand natural vastness of small
percussion instrument “Bana”, capture its rhythm and assimilate
inherent intricacies of the instrument.

GALLERY 4
TRIBAL SPIRITUAL WORLD
Images of a thorny tree has been made on the wall of the corridor
leading from Aesthetics gallery to Devlok. Thorns remind people of
pain and strength to bear pain and remain unmoved by it is
received from Devlok, where this ‘thorny’ corridor is leading.

GALLERY 4
1.It is hard nut to crack to conceptualise Devok in a modern
building and that too a Devlok where tribal people avoid to enter a
concrete place of worship whose vague image is often seen in the
form of a rostrum, a raw stone, a fluttering flag, a stick, a pillar,
trident, earthen lamp or terracotta offering is seen on the side of
roads, amidst jungles, on the bank of a small pond and sometimes
on invisible boundary of village in which deity is totally absent.

GALLERY 4
2.The shorthand language of symbols and signs in which these
tribal communities have writing constitution of their Devlok
borders on unending and unlimited possibilities of time and space.
Possibly for this reasons they did never attempt to build any
massive Devlok since the most massive of a building will be like a
dust particle in the context of these unlimited vastitude.

GALLERY 4
3.Therefore, all good and bad spirits of jungles, ponds, rivers, hills
have been invoked at Devlok Gallery. These inputs and symbols as
mentioned above are rostrums beneath trees, terracotta
officerings, tridents, earthen lamps, Meghnath Khamb of Korku
tribe, Sarag Naseni of Gonds, Gul of Bhils, Tatal Dev’s place, Dev
Gudi of Baigas etc. There are souls of ancestors, wandering spirits,
spooks and ghosts, innumerable saviour gods. Some are protecting
seeds, some bringing strayed cattle back home, some will repair
and restore broken hand or leg and some god will free village from
epidemic.

GALLERY 4
4.During visit to tribal Devlok gallery it become explicit that it is
more a world to experience than watch. Therefore, it is more
important to create that particular climate for making it feel or
experience in which inanimate stone, a rostrum and offerings
made to gods can start breathing like an animate.

GALLERY 4
5.As said above earlier also, more than one storeys have been
prepared in each gallery so that visitors can view it from various
angles from below and above. Deliberate effort has been made to
disturb the feeling if one is on the eartj and seeing everything from
some other plane. The same is the reason behind covering iron
grills ordinarily or partially with barbed chains so that continuity of
this experience is not only maintained but also strengthened the
chains which are symbols of deity’s power.

GALLERY 5
EXHIBITION AND GUEST GALLERY
Under the initiative of setting up a gallery for guest state, first of
all life of tribal communities of Chhattisgarh state is being depicted
in this gallery. That is why the corridor leading from Devlok to this
gallery has been converted into courtyard and corridor adjoining it
of Rajwar tribe of Sarguja in Chhattisgarh. Rajwar dwellings style
of bamboo and clay lattices and way of coating is highly
specialized and has the honour of becoming an identity of not only
its community, but also entire state.

GALLERY 5
1.Chhattisgarh is a tribal-dominated state and a large population
of these tribes lives in Bastar area. All the tribes have a specific
role to play in preparing Dussehra Rath over there at the time of
Dussehra right from identifying trees in jungles for it, upto
collection of leaves for covering it, driving nails home, preparing
various parts of the rath, brinking Maoli Mata’s Chhatra from
Jagdalpur, bending and pulling it on roads etc. Efforts are being
made to grasp specialities of all the tribal communities by linking
them with this meaningful exhibit depicting tribal affinity through
physical objects.

GALLERY 5
2.Besides, Maoli Mata ki Gudi, Sheetla Mata ka Sthan, Karmseni
Vraksh and a lane with dwellings of potter, washerman,
ironsmith/blacksmith and their tools have also been displayed.
Gudi of Adhishthata Devi Danteashwari is inside the door of
Rajwada of Bastar and since there is no major role of Bastar royal
family in bringing Danteshwari Mata to Bastar, preparation of
Dussehra Rath, celebrating the festival in this way and due to deep
attachment of all the tribal communities with these festivals and
rituals, consent has been reached give shape to entry door of the
gallery on the lines of entry gate of Bastar Rajwada.

GALLERY 5
Pictorial and written documentation of games of children of
various tribal communities like Baiga, Gond, Saharia, Kol, Korko,
Bharia etc has been made by visiting their areas. Since there are a
number of games of tribal children but only a few toys, this display
is being shaped with paintings, photographs and other means well
besides toys.

GALLERY 5
1.Playing images have been prepared using terracotta, hollows of
dried gourd, hemp, papier-mâché etc. with a view to make
understand nature of game. Images jumping, swaying on trees can
be seen to understand games played on trees. Wrestling images
smeared in mud can also be seen. Images of games played on
ground like gippa, goti, chaupad etc. will be shown on the ground.

GALLERY 5
2.Use of earthen pitchers made by potters of western Madhya
Pradesh in improving gallery’s acoustics and lighting arrangements
is worth noticing. Despite being a part of indigenous knowledge,
this can open a new important and innovative vista of using the
technique in modern context. A partition made of pieces of dry
bamboo will be effective in maintaining gallery’s light, warmth and
environment.

WORKSHOPS
1.METAL WORKSHOP:-
2.TERACOTA AND EARTH WORKSHOP:-

WORKSHOPS
1.WOOD AND BAMBOO WORKSHOP:-
2.PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP:-

WORKSHOPS
1.HANDMADE PAPER DISPLAY AND WORKSHOP:-
2.DANCE AND MUSIC WORKSHOP:-

tribal art museum-bhopal

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