...Rangoli...

Indian folk art has a tradition going back to 5000 years. It includes wall art as well as floor art. Kolam, Rangoli etc come under the latter category of art. Each part of India has its own 'brand' of floor art and we will try to give some basic information about these here.

The term RANGOLI is derived from 'Rang' (colour) + 'avalli' (coloured creepers) or 'Rang' + 'aavalli' (row of colours). Rangoli is Maharashtrain in origin although today it is practised everywhere. Rangoli is specially characteristic of Western India (Mahrashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan) - colour fills in contrast to the floor art in Eastern India - Bengal, Orissa, Himachal Pradesh, etc where they use Alpana, a line drawing in rice powder/paste and Kolam, which is predominantly used in South India - Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. The designs are symmetrical and geometric in shape drawn with lines that may be straight or wavy and rounded on the edges.

The motifs in Rangoli are usually taken from Nature - peacocks, swans, mango, flowers, creepers, etc. The coulours traditionally were derived from natural dyes - from barks of trees, leaves, indigo, etc. However, today, synthetic dyes are used in a range of bright colours. The materials used for Rangoli take on either a flat appearance, when coloured powder such as rice, brick, chilly, turmeric, etc is used or a 3-D effect when dhanyas, cereals, pulses, dhals, either in their natural colouring or tinted with natural dyes are used. Some artists use the 3-D effect for borders alone while others create beautiful designs using grains and beads entirely.
Originally Rangoli was done in small patterns - 2 ' by 2' but now entire floor areas of rooms and Hotel foyers are covered in intricate detailed designs. Grid lines may be drawn in light chalk first and then the designs copied carefully on them. Again, traditionally, such floor decorations were done only on auspiscious occasions or festivals. But today, any occasion is good enough - opening ceremonies, hotel promotions, etc. Further, artists hold exhibitions on Rangoli and other floor art where various modifications of the traditional art can be seen. Thus, in one variation, artists use even water as their medium! For this, a tank or tub of water is taken and kept in a still area where the water will not be disturbed by a breeze or movement of air. We believe a fine layer of charcoal powder (which is light and floats on the surface) is sprinked on the surface and the artist creates his/her designs using the rangoli powders on this water panel. The effect is magnificent, to say the least.

In conclusion, here is a note to all new artists: In folk art, one need not be afraid of making mistakes as there is no such thing as a mistake! In fine arts, as in music, one wrong note and it is 'abaswara,' but in folk art, the mistakes become embellishments and make the art work individual and unique. Each design is a personal experience of the drawer. The final effect will be very typical of the designer/drawer of the design - a firm hand, a shaky one, a trembling one - can make all the difference to folk art.