Santoshi Shyam is a Gond Artist and wife of (Gond Artist) Rajendra Kumar Shyam . The Gonds are a Tribal Community Widely Spread Over Madhya Pradesh. Gond Paintings Are Created On The Walls Of Their Dwellings And Besides Being Decorative, They are Expressions Of Their Religious Beliefs And Sentiments. The Themes Are Closely Linked With Their Daily Lives, And Depict Their Local Festivals And Gods, As Well As Objects And Creatures Present Around Them. However, They Have Now Started Painting On Paper And Canvas As Well.
The Gonds are one of the largest indigenous communities in India, concentrated in Madhya Pradesh and the surrounding regions. The word Gond comes from Kond, a Dravidian word meaning green mountains. Traditional Gond art was created on the walls and facades of their domestic and community spaces. It is in the early 1980s that a cluster of Gond artist starting adapting their ritualistic painting to modern mediums likes paper and canvases. Modern Gond art demonstrates strong roots in their historic lifestyle, the natural world, mythological beliefs and songs and oral histories. These complex and intriguing aspects merge aesthetically with modern modes of depiction and techniques, resulting in colourful odes to their myriad past.
