The Portuguese Blues

 If you walk down the picturesque, colourful lane of Fontainhas in Goa, you will come across colours

of the colonial past, in structures, architecture and hues. But most importantly, you will come across

painted tiles , mostly blue and white, being used as nameplates, to depict the scenes of Goa, in

galleries and normal houses alike. These tiles, known as the Azulejos tiles, are the impactful artistic

gifts that the Portuguese introduced to this country and its people. While the presence of this art

form had vanished from India with the departure of the Portuguese from Goa, it was recently

brought back and rejuvenated by artists and these tiles are painted and prepared in bulk all around

Goa at present. This art form has been deeply ingrained in the cultural folding of Goa and reflects its

past and present alike.

The origin of the word Azulejo traces its root back to three languages: Spanish, Portuguese and

Arabian. There are several accounts of history depicting the birth of this art form. Some claim that

this art form made its way to Spain and Portugal from Arab and that is why the ancient examples of

this particular art form did not indulge in painting figurines or humans and instead focused on

geometric patterns only. But when the art form got hemmed into the seams of the Portuguese

culture, human scenes started to be painted on these smooth tiles. Others claim that this art form

took birth when artists were trying to imitate mosaic painting of Rome but whatever might be the

root, it was popularised the most by the Portuguese culture. And hence, in this article, we shall

consider it as an influence of the Portuguese colonisers.

But it would be wrong to assume that the Azulejo craftwork was introduced to Goa b the Portuguese

and it remained there even after the Portuguese left. The Portuguese imported these tiles while they

were in Goa, from Portugal. When they were intrigued by the local culture and scenes of Goa, they

sent the local paintings to Portugal where Portuguese painters recreated them on the tiles. The

Portuguese colonisers never considered introducing the craftwork in Goa and thus when they left,

they took this treasure away with them.

Goa remained unaware of this Pandora box of aesthetic, culture and a budding market until some

students from Goa college of arts, most popular among them being Orlando De Noronha, went to

Portugal and returned with bags full of colonial past and Portuguese culture in the form of Azulejos

tiles. Not just that, they spearheaded the making of those tiles in Goa, established galleries,

workshops and studios and began a new era in the history of Goa by creating a brand new market

for these splendid painted tiles. Nowadays these Azulejos tiles seem like an integral part of Goan

culture and architecture, their presence adorning the walls of almost all structures all around Goa.

Azulejos tiles are mostly made from a dough made of clay and water, cut into neat square shapes

and toughened up by burning in kilns and made glazy by glass powder. The drawings are then either

made by sprinkling charcoal on the tiles using tracing paper and then painting or by drawing directly

to the tiles and painting. The colours are mostly made of materials that do not get tampered with

time and then the entire thing is burnt again in a kiln at a very high temperature to set the paint and

then soaked in water. The Azulejos tiles, though traditionally mostly blue and white, are often bright

with different hues and they can be seen everywhere, from churches to railway stations, from hotels

to home nameplates, from art galleries to dinnerware, travelling across the borders of Goa to all

over India and the world in the tourist bags.

The scenes painted on these tiles are deeply ingrained in Goan culture. There are paintings of Goan

markets, fishermen, people making local liquor, women washing clothes, Kunbi dance scenes, a busy

Goan road, everything compassing the daily life in Goa. Famous painter Mario Miranda’s cartoons

are also represented in many of these tiles. These tiles also serve widely as posh nameplates and

exquisite dinnerware.

The colonial powers from Europe have looted us of riches, gems and jewels historically. But they

have also helped in the synthesis and amalgamation of art forms and cultures now evident in

architectures, sculptures, paintings and highly influenced art forms like the Azulejos tiles. So if you

visit Goa in near future, make sure to go and observe these splendid pieces of art in galleries over

there and also buy a few pieces, if you can!

                                                                                       - Ushasi Bandyopadhyay