DEVALUATION OF TRIBAL ART
by Vincent Van Ross
Tribal art seldom receives the kind of appreciation and recognition it deserves.
Tribal art, like tribal languages, make do with a small vocabulary and little or no grammar. That is a bane and a boon at the same time.
They use fewer lines to depict something and use the basic or primary colours most of the time. Unfortunately, art critics fail to appreciate and support the strength in these just because their art is tribal art.
Many urban artists start with elaborate drawings filling in every little detail. As they evolve, the number of lines and details start reducing. And, ultimately, they end up with economy of lines. That is when we call them an evolved artist.
Similarly, they mix and match colours to create depth, feel , aesthetic appeal etc. But, as they evolve, they realize the raw strength of the primary colours. That is why many artists return to primary colours in the autumn of their lives after they have experimented with all their kinds of mix-and-match with their palettes.
Like language, art is a medium of expression. It is a medium of communication. Ultimately, it is the communication that is importantnot the language.
Most writers build up a huge vocabulary and use it in their early works. In later years, they spend time identifying words that are in everyday use and turn to them for effect.
Such writers may think that use of bombastic language will raise them to the league of intellectuals. But, such misconceptions are often short-lived. It doesnt take them long to realize that they cut no ice with their readers with such language. What kind of a reader would want to consult a dictionary now and then in the middle of reading a novel? It hampers pace and flow of the read.
When realization dawns on them, they turn to simpler language. Then they find more acceptability with their readers. That is because, if you write for a 50-year old, a 5-year old may not understand what you write. But, if you write for a 5-year-old, not only will it be understood by the 5-year-old but will also be readily understood by a 50-year-old. It is as simple as that.
The tribal languages may have no voluminous dictionaries like the Oxford, the Chambers, the Websters, the Collins and so on and so forth. But, the unwritten dictionary of their tribal language is more than sufficient to express and convey every little thing they need to say.
Similarly, they may not have elaborate grammar books. But, their languages are perfect without grammar. One may refer to grammar books to perfect ones language.
One is considered to have mastered a language when one can speak, read and write that language like ones mother tongue. That is the ultimate test of the mastery of the language. And, remember, one does not need a grammar book to speak, read and write ones mother tongue perfectly. Perfection comes naturally in ones mother tongue.
So, it is with tribal artists. They use minimum vocabulary that evolved urban artists use and their grammar is as fluent as their mother tongue. Their art communicates effectively from day one but their talents are ignored and discounted. They have no access to city galleries. And, they cannot exert any influence on the media to promote them. But, that does not make their art inferior to what is produced by artists living in large cities.
The idioms of tribal artists have simplicity ingrained in themboth in their language and their art. Sometimes, urban artists are known to improvise motifs created by tribal artists and use them in their works.
This is great injustice to the tribal people who have no voice in the mainstream. And, it is very, very sad indeed.
The writer is a political and cultural commentator and editor based in New Delhi, India
