Crafts of india

A brief of some famous crafts of India

1. Religions- creating life B y: DHAIRYATA JAIN

2. CRAFTS OF INDIA

3. PHULKARI AND BAGH

4. 17 The traditional craft of Punjab Flower working Odni , dupatta and shawls Bagh -the garments that cover the whole body Usually wore on ceremonial occasions or the birth of a son Whole work done in white and yellow silk floss on cotton khaddar using Darn stich Starts from center and goes on Worn by women

5. CHAMBAL RUMAL

6. Himachal Pradesh Made of fine cotton and muslin Embroidered by silk and silver and silver guilt wire Embroidery is done on a double satin stitch technique which ensured an exact replication of the image on the reverse of the fabric. Subjects are drawn by the women in outlines Charcoal was used for tracing Motifs: related to lord Krishna S ilk embroidered square pieces of handspun and hand-woven unbleached mulmul , fine cloth that were used to cover dishes of food, gifts, to significant persons and offering to a deity, or exchange between the families of the bride and the groom as token of good will. 19

7. WARLI PAINTINGS

8. Maharashtra’s folk paintings The largest tribe found on the outskirts of Mumbai Vivid expression of daily and social events of the tribe Done on walls Do not depict mythological characters Depict social life Rhythmic pattern Human figures engaged in activities Painted on mud using white and yellow and red [occasionally] White color-grounding rice Evoke powers of god Series of dots makes a line 21

9. MADHUBANI

10. Village in Bihar Colors are applied flat with no shading Outline-double line Generally depict nature and Hindu motifs Depict scenes Traditionally done on wet muddy walls of houses 23

11. LAC WARE

12. P roduced by the female lac insect found in abundance in the forests of Rajasthan, is formed into a variety of jewelry items. Lac bangles are worn especially on auspicious occasions and also signify that the wearer is married Colors are bright and frequently studded with glass pieces. 25

13. KUNDAN JADAU

14. Kundan is a Mughal technique. H igh skilled craftsmanship T he tradition of Jadau work has been in practice in the states of Rajasthan and Gujarat since the Mughal Era. Jadau jewellery is also called Engraved Jewellery and is unique and a kind in itself. Considered to be a traditional jewelry of India , it is used in many traditional and auspicious occasions, like marriages and festival celebrations. 27

15. TANGKA PAINTINGS

16. A Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, or  silk appliqué , usually depicting a  Buddhist  deity, scene, or  mandala. Thangkas are traditionally kept unframed and rolled up when not on display, mounted on a textile backing somewhat in the style of Chinese scroll paintings relatively small T hese were designed to be displayed, typically for very brief periods on a monastery wall, as part of religious festivals.  A central "deity" is often surrounded by other identified figures in a symmetrical composition. Narrative scenes are less common, but do appear. 29

17. KASHIDAKARI

18. Kashmiri embroidery (also Kashida ) is used for phirans (woollen kurtas) and namdahs (woollen rugs)as well as stoles  It draws inspiration from nature . Birds, blossoms and flowers, creepers, chinar leaves, ghobi , mangoes, lotus, and trees are the most common themes. The entire pattern is made with one or two embroidery stitches, and mainly chain stitch on a base of silk, wool and cotton : the colour is usually white, off-white or cream but nowadays one can find stoles and salwar- kameez sets in many other colours such as brown, deep blue, sky blue, maroon and rani pink  The craftsmen use shades that blend with the background 31

19. BLUE POTTERY

20. 33 The art of making blue glaze pottery came to Rajasthan via Kashmir, the Mughal emperors’ favourite retreat and, more importantly, their entry point into India.  Mongol artisans combined Chinese glazing technology with Persian decorative arts Jaipur blue pottery, made out of Egyptian paste, is glazed and low-fired. No clay is used: the 'dough' for the pottery is prepared by mixing quartz stone powder, powdered glass, Multani Mitti , borax, gum and water The colour palette is restricted to blue derived from the cobalt oxide, green from the copper oxide and white , though other non-conventional colours , such as yellow and brown are sometimes included.

21. GOTA PATTI

22. A form of metal embroidery which originated in Rajasthan. It is crafted using appliqué technique with a strip of gold or silve r or various other coloured ribbons of different widths woven in a satin or twill weave. It involves placing woven gold cloth onto fabrics such as georgette or bandhini to create different surface textures. Plastic Gota and is highly durable as it has a good resistance to moisture and does not tarnish as opposed to metal based Gota . The process is lengthy and time consuming. 36

23. PATTU WEAVING

24. THE MEGHWAL COMMUNITY weave local wool into narrow strips , or patti , that are then stitched together to form wide shawls known as pattu that are worn by members of all communities in the region. The base cloth of the pattu is in either plain or twill-weaves and the motifs are created through the use of the extra weft is usually of a colour in contrast to the base cloth and is inserted after every two picks , thus producing an impression of finely embroidered fabric. The pattu constitute an important element in local rituals among the Meghwal , the pattu weaving community , pattu form a part of the gifts given to the prospective groom`s family when fixing a marial alliance ; they are also gifted to all the immediate relatives to the groom during the marriage ceremony. 38

25. PHAD PAINTING

26. A style religious  scroll painting and  folk painting , practiced in Rajasthan state of  India. This style of painting is traditionally done on a long piece of cloth or canvas, known as  p had . The ancient tradition of scroll painting survives in Rajasthan as Phad . A Phad is a long rectangular cloth painting that tells of the adventures and travails of Pabuji , a local hero or other epic heroes.   The Phad is painted in bold colors and is rolled on two shafts of bamboo, thus making it easy to carry.  The large-scale horizontal paintings on cloth portraying the epic lives of the local hero-gods are popularly known as Phad paintings. These paintings have the mammoth task of representing a complex and a full blown folk epic narrative, which it achieves through a very specific style of representation, filled with figures & pictorial incidents, these paintings form a kind of dramatic backdrop to epic story telling performances.  40

27. BLOCK PRINTING OF BAGRU AND SANGANER

28. Practiced in the vicinity of Jaipur and share a common vocabulary of bel(creepers ), buta and buti (floral motifs of varying sizes) and jaal (floral net ). Sanganer`s graceful curvilinear floral motifs and colour palette of reds and blacks printed against sun-bleached white , cream or grey-blue backgrounds are defined as much by its employment of the direct printing technique as the Mughal influenced aesthetic prevalent at the court. D yed and mordant prints of Bagru catered to the folk , trading, agricultural and artisan communities that constituted the local population . Each of these communities had a specific sartorial code ; the combination of colours and motifs used on a printed skirt , veil or garment could identify the wearer`s community and occupation as well as the season. 42

29. KANTHA

30. Kantha  is a type of embroidery popular in eastern South Asia, especially Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal and Odisha. In Odisha old saris are stacked on each other and hand-stitched to make a thin piece of cushion. This is normally used above a bed cushion or instead of a cushion .  The use of kantha is popular in " Kantha saris " traditionally worn by women in  Bengal. Kantha stitching is also used to make simple quilts, commonly known as  Nakshi Kantha . Women in Bengal typically use old saris and cloth and layer them with kantha stitch to make a light blanket, throw or bedspread, especially for children.  Kantha is very popular with tourists visiting Bengal and is a specialty of Bolpur , West Bengal, India. Kantha is still the most popular form of embroidery practised by rural women. The traditional form of Kantha embroidery was done with soft dhotis and saris, with a simple running stitch along the edges 44

31. KALAMKARI

32. Kalamkari designs : The women figures are always shown in yellow tones. The celestial gods with an aura are always painted blue . The evil demons are featured in red and green shades . T he art form emerged from the temples , religious themes are most popular and striking . The iconic figures of gods and goddesses are very common too. Often a painting or a saree will feature the sun chariot in its glory. The red is sourced from madder root or pomegranate seed. Black comes from myrobalam . The hands of the artists are naturally free while they paint. Hence no two panels look similar. This is a trademark of an original piece. Textiles featuring household items have classic , linear block prints. All Kalamkari designs, patterns and prints are still made from natural vegetable dyes and not harmful chemicals. 46