Pushpa Kumari was raised in the village of Madhubani in the Mithila region, close to the border between India and Nepal in the state of Bihar. Dating from at least the fourteenth century, Mithila or Madhubani painting is an art form traditionally practised by women from this region. For several centuries it was used to mark rituals and ceremonies and was created on the walls of homes and certain objects. The Madhubani district is particularly known for its artists, hence the form is often called Madhubani. The works are characterized by intricate line drawing, an underlying symbolism and geometric borders. Kumari's teacher was her grandmother, Mahasundari Devi, a well-known painter and one of the earliest Mithila artists to transfer their designs to paper and canvas. 

A number of factors lead to Mithila painting becoming more broadly known outside the community in which it developed. In the 1930s a severe earthquake affected the region, tearing open the buildings and exposing the beautiful painted walls. Local British official WG Archer documented the paintings through photographs and also asked artists to reproduce them on paper. He later published the first research text on Mithila painting.¹ In the 1960s, a severe drought and famine left many of the people of this region without a means of livelihood. Encouraged by a government grant, a few women began to paint on paper for sale, as a new source of family income. The All India Handicrafts Board provided the paper and paints. This transition also resulted in many men becoming artists in the tradition. At first they simply transferred onto paper the traditional images — gods and goddesses and symbolic icons — from the wall paintings. Over the next 30 years, while retaining the wall paintings' distinctive styles and conventions, they began painting many new subjects; episodes from Indian local epics and tales, ritual activities and village life. 

The first artists to paint on paper and gain recognition included Pushpa's grandmother, Mahasundari Devi, as well as Ganga Devi, Sita Devi and Baua Devi. A younger generation of artists who have begun to address political and feminist themes and public issues includes Pushpa Kumari, Shivan Paswan, Urmila Devi and Amrita Das. Male artists Kamlesh Kumar Roy and Santosh Kumar Das have also begun to create works in the Mithila style. 

Mithila painting still remains an intrinsic part of village life, highly traditional in technique and style, and handed on from mother to daughter. Pushpa Kumari is one of the most experimental Mithila artists practising today. Her grandmother Mahasundari Devi was a well-known artist in this tradition, and Kumari learnt directly from her. As curator Minhazz Majumdar comments: 

What makes Pushpa special is that though she is rooted in her centuries old tradition, she has incorporated not only contemporary ideas and treatment, but also, an artistic intensity, an aesthetic ideal that is truly her own, difficult to find in the mass of generic Madhubani paintings being churned out today [for a tourist market].²

Kumari uses intricate, fine line drawing, with a border of repetitive motifs. The works draw on an elaborate symbolism — for example, fish represent fertility, peacocks are associated with love, and serpents with divinity. Mithila painting is linked with marriage and social ceremonies, with many paintings intended as instructions for newlyweds. They have a strong theme of sexuality and the union between male and female. Kumari draws on this iconography to address contemporary historical and social issues often relevant to women, such as female infanticide, dowry deaths, and sexuality, as well as stories of love and union from the Ramayana.

In her powerful Tsunami 2015. the ravaging storm has the face of a vengeful goddess adorned with ornate jewellery, and the stylized waves of the water sweep away people, animals and objects. Saving the girl child 2015 draws on the image of fecundity and Mother Nature to protest against the death of female babies, who are often regarded as a burden to their parents (in contrast to sons). Kumari has also collaborated with Pradyumna Kumar, her brother-in-law, on a number of large-scale works, including the stunning Village Life 2015 on silk.

Endnotes

1. WG Archer is credited as the first art historian to document this style. In 1934 Archer was stationed in Bihar as part of the Indian Civil service, and was responsible for documenting damage caused by a major earthquake. Archer was invited into the homes and permitted to photograph the interior painted walls. He subsequently published an article summarising his documentation and research in Marg in 1949. For further information see: David Szanton, 'Mithila painting: 1949–2014', Marg, A Magazine of the Arts, 1 September 2014, viewed 22 January 2025.
2. Minhazz Majumdar, 'Transforming Tradition' [Pushpa Kumari], Raw Vision, no.54, Spring 2006, pp.52–7.