Digital Artistry of Mysore Ganjifa: Integrating Traditional Art into Contemporary Design

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-535-5_25How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Mysore Ganjifa; Cultural Revival; Digital Design; New-Age Designs; Miniature Art; Heritage Fashion

Abstract

There is more to Mysore Ganjifa than a deck of hand-painted playing cards. Ganjifa provides an insight into the complex spiritual and artistic traditions of Indian culture. These cards were originated from persian-mughal rule and grew under Krishnaraja Wodeyar III’s patronage in the 19th century, particularly characterized and known for its exquisitely detailed miniatures painted on tiny circular or rectangular surfaces often made in paper, cloth, or palm leaves. These miniatures depict Hindu deities and mythological tales telling a story and preserving the devotional energy crafted with natural pigments and gold accents. This paper introduces Ganjifa into the realm of modern textile design by giving a new perspective of pieces inspired by non-sacred motifs found in art, such as fish, peacocks, and creeping vines, rather than religious iconography in order to preserve the rhythm and richness of Ganjifa Art for fashion versatility and wearability. By combining digital tools with conventional visual language, where a new variety of design patterns was produced to feel both contemporary and rooted to its tradition. The consumer survey preferred great interest in the developed designs, particularly in the rich color schemes of traditional ganjifa art, detailed line work, and sense of cultural depth. The respondents claimed that the patterns had a deeper meaning and were distinctive features for fashionable garments. This paper shows that traditional art need not remain stuck in the past but with careful transition for a new generation, it can be a part of today’s visual culture. This developed design suggests a viable means of preserving heritage beyond merely a design experiment that respects its origins while clearly addressing the present. It demonstrates that innovation and tradition are not mutually exclusive but rather they can coexist harmoniously.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Sandhya Ravi
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/03/16
TI  - Digital Artistry of Mysore Ganjifa: Integrating Traditional Art into Contemporary Design
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Creativity, Innovation & Design (ICCID 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 345
EP  - 362
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-535-5_25
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-535-5_25
ID  - Ravi2026
ER  -