Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Hexagons

This is contributed by my kid. It is a simple combination of Hexagons and multi-colors. This needs 7x4 dot pattern.
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8x8 Swastika Diwali Rangoli


Here is Diwali and we will soon start series of Diwali special Rangolies. This one is a simple 8x8 Swastika Diwali Rangoli. The Deepam on the edges can be made longer and colored with combination of red and yellow to make it look more realistic. The Swastika in the center can also be filled with flower petals instead of colors. You may use Red rose petals and Yellow rose petals to fill these. Some people use different grains or pulses.
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Saturday, September 27, 2008

Rangolies

Rangoli is one of the most popular and traditional art forms in India. It is a very creative form of Geometry or freehand art, mostly created on the floor, using white powder, made from white stone or sometimes even Rice flour. Generally these patterns are made by using a grid of dots and then freehand smooth drawings, either joining these dots are going around these dots. Once completed, these are filled with colors, which make them very attractive. The term Rangoli seems to have derived from words rang (Hindi - color) and aavalli ('colored creepers' or 'row of colors').

Rangoli has also attained a position of cultural importance in Hindu families. Almost every Hindu house has a Rangoli in front of their house everyday. The women, draw these Rangolies in their courtyards, everyday morning. The culture believes that, every day morning, the courtyard is washed and Rangoli is drawn, along with Pooja sanskar done for the the front door step (horsala - in kannada) and the Tulasi Plant, which is again usually situated in the courtyard. In addition to this daily routine, the Rangoli is extensively used during festival seasons. These are more grander and more colorful than the regular daily ones.

History of Rangoli

The origin of rangoli painting is traced to a legend recorded in the Chitralakshana, the earliest Indian treatise on painting. When the son of a Kings high priest died, Brahma, Lord of the universe, asked the king to paint the likeness of the boy so that Brahma could breathe life into him again. This is how, it is believed, the first painting was made. Also, the son of the king painted a portrait of a girl whom the son liked very much, although the king would not let his son see her. Rangoli also became a form of self-portraiture for women.

Chola rulers made extensive use of floor paintings. They are known by different names in different parts of the country; Alpana in Bengal, Aripana in Bihar, Madana in Rajasthan, Rangoli in Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra, Chowkpurana in Uttar Pradesh and Kolam in Kerala and Tamilnadu, Muggu in Andhrapradesh. Some of these, especially many of the North Indian ones like Aalpana more often refer to floor painting with traditional wet color, rather than the powder rangoli more conventional in south India.

Modern day Rangoli

The Rangoli designs in tradition are usually taken from Nature - peacocks, swans, mango, flowers, creepers, etc. Today, synthetic dyes are used in a range of bright colors, though earlier they were derivatives of natural products, like Indigo, etc. Sometimes, instead of colors, pulses, cereals and seeds of different plants are used to fill the areas within to make them look beautiful. In addition, most Rangolies sport symmetry.The designs are symbolic and common to the entire country, and can include geometrical patterns, with lines, dots, squares, circles, triangles; the swastika, lotus, trident, fish, conch shell, footprints, creepers, leaves, trees, flowers, animals and anthropomorphic figures. Originally Rangoli was done in small patterns, but now entire floor areas are covered in intricate detailed designs. Traditionally, such floor decorations were done only on auspicious occasions or festivals. But today, any occasion is good enough — weddings, birthday parties, opening ceremonies, etc. In the deep South and South West of India and Kerala, flowers are used to create floor art.

Rangoli has a lot of religious significance, enhancing the beauty of the surroundings and spreading joy and happiness all around. The most common festivals, which boast of great Rangoli in North Karanataka are Deepavali, Dasara, Ganesha Festival, Kamanna Habba, Ugadi, Nagara Pachami. In addition to these major festivals, you may also find these done extensively well, during the full moon and new moon days. They are also used during Satyanarayana Pooja, House warming ceremony, Marriages, Engagement functions, Birthdays, etc.

This Blog is devoted to Rangoli Art and Culture, and intends to document and publish most of these North Karnataka popular Rangolies. Contributions, if any, please submit to admin@joladarotti.com.
References: Wikipedia

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Simple Star

This is a simple 5x3 Star, commonly used at the sides of the main decoration. It can also be used at the hall corners. Very easy to make and you can fill colors matching to your main decoration.
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15x8 Shanku Rangoli


This is a beautiful 15x8 Shanku Rangoli. This needs a very good steady hand and control for smooth curves. This looks great for center decoration and generally used during main festivals, like Ugadi or Dasara. This can be used at the front door in the court yard or in Pooja room.
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15x8 Color Hexa Rangoli

15x8 Color Hexa is very intricate and gives lot of opportunities for the creative mind for coloring. This is a great center piece decoration and is very popular during Hindu festivals. Generally this is used in the courtyard, but if your God room is big enough, this can very well adorn it.
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Autumn Leaves


This is a westernized Rangoli of Autumn Leaves. You may fill in more colors in the center swastika to make it more attractive. This can be used in the front door or in four corners of your hall. This goes well with long leafy borders, again filled with Autumn colors.
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Saturday, September 20, 2008

15x8 Stars Color Rangoli ver 2

This is another version of the 15x8 Stars colored Rangoli. You may notice that, just by changing colors, the appearance and ambience changes so much. No wonder, Rangolies, as an art has survived this long and practiced everyday.
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15x8 Stars Color Rangoli


This is a 15x8 pattern with stars all around and in the middle. This version is many straight lines and hence very easy for a beginner to make. This is again a center attraction and mostly used in front of the main door during festivals. You make vary colors to make it more attractive.
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15x8 Roses Color Rangoli

This is a beautiful 15x8 pattern, mostly used during festivals at the main door or even in God's room. Color's can be veried to make it have different looks. Usually light and bright colors are used for morning Poojas or prayers and darker and thicker colors are used for evening celebrations.
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Friday, September 19, 2008

13x7 Jasmine - Colored Rangoli

This one is a beautiful 13x7 Jasmine. This is a great attraction for center piece decoration and also goes very well for front of the main door. You may vary colors to get this into more attractive forms.
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Thursday, September 18, 2008

15x8 Hexa Color

This is a beautiful 15x8 Hexa pattern. This one can be used in front of main door. More color options are possible to make it more attractive.
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5x5 Rangoli colored

This is one of the simplest 5x5 pattern. Very easy to create and less time needed. With different color patterns this looks very attractive. This can be used at the corners of the hall or compound during major festivals or front of main door on regular days.
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Wednesday, September 17, 2008

6x6 Colored Swastika

This one is a 6x6 colored Swastika, found most commonly in front on many houses in North Karnataka, even on normal days. This is small and simple to create and very quick, so used very frequently. The colors can be varied to make it more suitable to the surrounding colors.
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6x6 - Colored 01


This is a simple 6x6 colored version of swatika Rangoli. It is commonly used on daily basis, as it simple and fast to create. Most house holds in Nroth Karnataka have Rangolies in their court yard everyday and you may find this version most commonly.
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12x1 Shanku - Plain


This is a plain All Shanku deal ! Notice that, you can actually change the orientation of Shanku's in either direction. In this version the top three are pointing up, but you can choose to put all in one direction or vary each of them and get more creative. Filing with colors, again makes this more awesome. These can be used as a center attraction or individual Shanku's can be used as corners or borders.
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15x8 Jasmines - Plain

This is a 15x8 Jasmines version, again a center attraction. Quite easy for a novice Rangoli artist. You can get more creative by filling colors.
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15x8 Roses - Plain


This one is called a Roses and Jasmines, some call it only Roses. 15x8 matrix and pretty simple and fast to make. Basic Rangoli skills are enough to get this one right. With colors, again, this has tremendous potential for center or door front attraction.
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15x8 Parrots - Plain

This is a bit intricate and needs smooth control when drawing on the floor with Rangoli powder or Rice flour. With colors, this is a real attraction and can dress your center or front of the main door. Several color combinations are possible and there is no end to the creative mind.
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13x7 Plain - Jasmine

Some people call this Jasmine 13x&, as it has flowers looking like Jasmine all around. This is used as a main decoration in the center or in front of the main door. With colors this, looks awesome.
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11x6 Curvey

This is a 11x6 Curvey one...looks great with colors. Once again, this is mainly used in the center or in front of the main door.
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15x8 Shanku - plain

Here is another beauty - 15x8 Shanku. Again, this is used mostly as a center piece in all decoration, in front of the main God or main door. This is a plain version and can hold several combination of colors to make stand out and attractive. I plan to upload some colored versions of this soon.
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15 x 8 Rangoli - plain

This one needs 15x8 matrix and pretty simple to draw. Once done, you can fill vibrant colors to make it more attractive. This is mainly drawn in the center, in front of the God's Idol or in front of the main door. I will plan to share the colored version of this soon.
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