Vadodaras most popular rangoli exhibition is back
Devanshi Joshi. Vadodara/DNA
Saturday, October 25, 2008
At first glance, it is unclear whether the image at Vadodaras Kirti Mandir is a picture or a rangoli. No wonder then that about 50,000 people throng the annual exhibition. This year, the exhibition will feature internationally renowned artists of Swastik Rangoli Kalakar group and will run from October 25 to October 31.While the rangolis are usually as varied as portraits, still life, land- and seascapes and wildlife, this year the groups 15 rangolis celebrate children as part of the Bal nirogi varsha. The rangolis, which are roughly 6ft x 4ft are made on hardwood boards and are the results of as many as 80 hours of labour. To aid better viewing, the organisers are setting up a continuous platform about 5ft high, in addition to ensuring proper lighting for all the pictures. Most artists here have been involved with rangolis for a number of years, but have had no formal training in the art. “Rangoli takes practice and passion,” says Abhay Gadkari, who has been practicing the art for 35 years. He has also been invited twice - in 2002 and 2003 - to participate in the Diwali Festival of Lights organized by Asia New Zealand Foundation, run by the government of New Zealand. “Our group was established in 1985, when the traditional art form was on the verge of being forgotten in the concrete jungles. There were no signs that the younger generation wanted to keep the art alive, so six artists decided to work collectively and launched the Swastik Rangoli Kalakar Group, Baroda,” adds.The art demands practice, says Rajendra Dindorkar, secretary of the group. “I like to innovate in rangoli forms. This year, I have made a hanging rangoli using an acrylic sheet. The rangoli is a mirror image, and the actual image is visible in the sheet above it,” he says.“Tremendous concentration is required to make a rangoli picture. There is no scope for correction, because once the colour is filled in, there is no way of removing it. We take care not to whistle while we work!” said, Raju Chauhan, whose rangoli depicts a girl child welcoming Diwali.“The most unfortunate aspect of this art is that it is so temporary. There is no way to preserve it. Once the rangoli exhibition is over, the hard boards are removed and all the rangoli powder falls to floor in a multicoloured mound. A picture that takes hours to create is lost in seconds,” the artist said.
Devanshi Joshi. Vadodara/DNA
Saturday, October 25, 2008
At first glance, it is unclear whether the image at Vadodaras Kirti Mandir is a picture or a rangoli. No wonder then that about 50,000 people throng the annual exhibition. This year, the exhibition will feature internationally renowned artists of Swastik Rangoli Kalakar group and will run from October 25 to October 31.While the rangolis are usually as varied as portraits, still life, land- and seascapes and wildlife, this year the groups 15 rangolis celebrate children as part of the Bal nirogi varsha. The rangolis, which are roughly 6ft x 4ft are made on hardwood boards and are the results of as many as 80 hours of labour. To aid better viewing, the organisers are setting up a continuous platform about 5ft high, in addition to ensuring proper lighting for all the pictures. Most artists here have been involved with rangolis for a number of years, but have had no formal training in the art. “Rangoli takes practice and passion,” says Abhay Gadkari, who has been practicing the art for 35 years. He has also been invited twice - in 2002 and 2003 - to participate in the Diwali Festival of Lights organized by Asia New Zealand Foundation, run by the government of New Zealand. “Our group was established in 1985, when the traditional art form was on the verge of being forgotten in the concrete jungles. There were no signs that the younger generation wanted to keep the art alive, so six artists decided to work collectively and launched the Swastik Rangoli Kalakar Group, Baroda,” adds.The art demands practice, says Rajendra Dindorkar, secretary of the group. “I like to innovate in rangoli forms. This year, I have made a hanging rangoli using an acrylic sheet. The rangoli is a mirror image, and the actual image is visible in the sheet above it,” he says.“Tremendous concentration is required to make a rangoli picture. There is no scope for correction, because once the colour is filled in, there is no way of removing it. We take care not to whistle while we work!” said, Raju Chauhan, whose rangoli depicts a girl child welcoming Diwali.“The most unfortunate aspect of this art is that it is so temporary. There is no way to preserve it. Once the rangoli exhibition is over, the hard boards are removed and all the rangoli powder falls to floor in a multicoloured mound. A picture that takes hours to create is lost in seconds,” the artist said.
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1 comment:
u must visit kirti madir vadodara to belive bt even after seeing it its hard to bel;ive tht the work is done by powder colour. asambhav sa lagta hai the art work is next to original, its one of the best.
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