Methodology
India comprises 28 states and 8 Union Territories; each state possesses wall paintings, and documenting them is a tedious job. They are administratively divided into states, districts, tehsils, etc. The Art and Material Heritage Division of INTACH initiated the WPD project through its network of Chapters and INTACH Conservation Institute (ICI) centres.
The methodology includes:
- Survey and Photo-documentation – The primary objective of the project is to survey all the heritage sites existing within the state and single out those that have wall paintings. Once the state is identified, it is divided into districts, tehsils, etc., to initiate the process of survey. The state team of WPD conducts the survey and research of historic buildings. The information is also gathered from the locals. In this, the network of INTACH offices around the country plays a significant role. The trained WPD survey team document these wall painting sites and records them photographically.
Wall painting sites that are not over 100 years old at the time of survey are not considered for the documentation process. Also, the wall painting sites that are entirely repainted with modern industrial paint and have no traces of original paintings left are excluded from the survey.
- Inventorization – The second step involves preparation of inventories as it is an intelligible way of documenting wall paintings, structures, and sites. The inventories include descriptive data on name, date, location, architectural description, painting technique, ownership, use, protection status, assessment of significance, previous interventions, and present condition of conservation of every wall painting site. In addition, the area of painting is measured, and a note on its stratigraphy is also prepared by the survey team.
- Condition Assessment – The process of documentation also helps in assessing the condition of wall painting sites and identifying the various forms of deterioration.
- Research and Editing – The inventories and photo-documentation are worked upon and evaluated. In addition to that, desktop research is carried out to prepare the contents for the directory.
- Publication – The gruelling process of research, editing, and designing leads to the final publication of the Directory.
- Outreach and publicity – The book is made available at INTACH shops, Amazon websites, and shared with significant stakeholders, libraries. The database created becomes an important source of information for art historians, researchers, students, conservators, as well as tourists.
Special Note: A two-day orientation training program was designed by the WPD Head Office to initiate the documentation in the state. The Head Office coordinates with the concerned State conveners or co-conveners of the state, and interested participants who are willing to be a part of the project are invited for the training program. The workshop aims to train the surveyors for a quality output. During the course, selected participants visit a wall painting site, wherein they learn to use the tools and techniques required for documenting a wall painting site under the guidance of the WPD Head Office team. Selected participants are further shortlisted/ selected to form a WPD team (for a particular state).
