Sita Devi

Indian, died 2005

Biography“Sita Devi, one of the most prominent early Mithila artists and among the first to transfer the traditional art form from the walls of the home to paper and canvas, was a Mahapatra Brahmin from the village of Jitwarpur. Her distinct aesthetic popularized the ‘bharni’ style of Mithila painting, which emphasizes strong colours over fine lines. …

Over the course of her long life (the artist passed away in 2005 at the age of 92), Sita Devi’s work brought critical national and international attention to Mithila art. In addition to her own artistic practice, Sita Devi worked tirelessly to develop and uplift her village and community through education and economic empowerment.

As an artist in residence at the National Handicrafts and Handlooms Museum in New Delhi, Sita Devi found admirers of her work in several politicians including ex Presidents and Prime Ministers like Lal Bahadur Shastri, Dr. Rajendra Prasad and Indira Gandhi. In 1975, she won a National Award, a few years later, in 1981 she was awarded the Padma Shri, one of the India’s highest civilian honours, and in 1984 won the Bihar Ratna Samman. During the course of the impressive artistic career, Sita Devi has exhibited her work in more than ten countries, and finds place in the permanent collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris, the Mithila Museum in Japan and many other international institutions.” The Saffron Art Blog, https://blog.saffronart.com/2013/02/11/sita-devi-a-legendary-mithila-artist/.

Archer, W.G. “Maithil Painting.” Marg 3/3 (1949).
Avari, Nishad. “Sita Devi: A Legendary Mithila Artist.” The Saffron Art Blog. February 11, 2013. https://blog.saffronart.com/2013/02/11/sita-devi-a-legendary-mithila-artist/
Kramrisch, Stella. Unknown India: Ritual Art in Tribe and Village. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1968.
Rekha, Neel. “From Folk Art to Fine Art: Changing Paradigms in the Historiography of Maithil Painting.” Journal of Art Historiography 2 (June 2010): 1–20.
Szanton, David. “The Politics of Mithila Painting.” 2017. https://orias.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/the_politics_of_mithila_painting_2-2017.pdf. See also: https://orias.berkeley.edu/resources-teachers/mithila-painting-folk-art-india.
----. “Mithila Painting: Folk Art No Longer?” Biblio (March/April, 2004).
Vequaud, Yves. The Women Painters of Mithila. London: Thames & Hudson, 1977.

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