Genesis of glass painting in India
Eighteenth century saw the flowering of a distinct art form in India -now popularly known as glass painting. It flourished chiefly due to the patronage given to the Chinese artists, who lived and worked for the nobility and royalty. As is evident from the name itself, these paintings are done on clear glass. Requiring immense skill , glass painting is extremely difficult, for the technique required when painting on an opaque surface, is reversed in painting glass. Religious themes dominate these paintings;however, court scenes and portraits also find place in these paintings.
Eighteenth century saw the flowering of a distinct art form in India -now popularly known as glass painting. It flourished chiefly due to the patronage given to the Chinese artists, who lived and worked for the nobility and royalty. As is evident from the name itself, these paintings are done on clear glass. Requiring immense skill , glass painting is extremely difficult, for the technique required when painting on an opaque surface, is reversed in painting glass. Religious themes dominate these paintings;however, court scenes and portraits also find place in these paintings.
Important centers
Falling in the genre of popular art, glass painting spread rapidly in western and southern India. Regional styles also flourished simultaneously in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, and Bengal. The town of Thanjavur ( Tamil Nadu) became a popular centre of the craft of painting on glass and this tradition continues till today. Thanjavur became such an important centre that very often the glass paintings are mistakenly referred to as the Thanjavur sacred icon paintings..Glass painting became popular with the masses, as it was quite inexpensive. These pictures began to be hung on walls.
Types of glass painting
Glass paintings fall into two broad categories- one comparatively courtly and the other folk. The main themes of the paintings were religious. Apart from religious themes secular subjects and the natural objects were also painted.
Decoration
The glass paintings are decorated with gold leaf, providing devotional images for the puja (worship) room. The colours used are rich and bold. If the figure painted is that of a deity, it is surrounded or housed within a frame. Often the formal frame is created by depicting heavily fringed and tasselled curtains, chandeliers, glass lamps, winged angels, or heavy furniture.
Process and techniques
Glass painting follows a procedure that is markedly different from the process followed when painting on 
opaque surfaces. The technique requires visual memory since the details, especially the finishing and shading lines, are painted in first and the large areas of colour are filled in afterwards. The picture is mounted with its unpainted side uppermost so that it can be viewed through the glass. The painting is executed by skilled artists,who exude exemplary confidence and immaculate craftsmanship. The picture, in tempera, is begun with the brush outlines and finer details being filled in first. Interestingly when the painting is finished these lines appear on the top layer. The effect of gilding is achieved by pasting gold or silver foil on the unpainted areas. This is followed by filling the larger areas with opaque paints. These areas are generally given a flat finish except when depicting drapery or when used to depict the face and body, in which case shading techniques are used. Gold leaf, small sequins and other shining particles are used to imitate jewellery. Sometimes portions of the picture are mirrored with mercury
opaque surfaces. The technique requires visual memory since the details, especially the finishing and shading lines, are painted in first and the large areas of colour are filled in afterwards. The picture is mounted with its unpainted side uppermost so that it can be viewed through the glass. The painting is executed by skilled artists,who exude exemplary confidence and immaculate craftsmanship. The picture, in tempera, is begun with the brush outlines and finer details being filled in first. Interestingly when the painting is finished these lines appear on the top layer. The effect of gilding is achieved by pasting gold or silver foil on the unpainted areas. This is followed by filling the larger areas with opaque paints. These areas are generally given a flat finish except when depicting drapery or when used to depict the face and body, in which case shading techniques are used. Gold leaf, small sequins and other shining particles are used to imitate jewellery. Sometimes portions of the picture are mirrored with mercury 
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