4.03.2008

Kolam on the Floor

In the process of designing an Indian themed wedding I came across the art form of Kolam or Rangoli, in which rice flour is poured or brushed on the floor in patterns of dots and continuous lines. Some of these patterns are quite elaborate and in parts of India, these kolams are drawn by women at the doorstep daily to protect those within from evil and to invite prosperity (and ants). While I'm not so sure about the protective qualities of flour, I do like the designs a great deal. One website intimated that the dots represent obstacles we face, while the line (traditionally one continuous) represents our life starting with God, passing around many obstacles and returning to God, which I thought was a beautiful sentiment. The photo below leads to the nicest kolam blog I've found online:


You can design your own Kolam with this Kolam Generator. Learn more about Kolams.

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4 Comments:

Blogger Tara said...

I had never heard of this art form. That design in the photo is really pretty and intricate!

15/4/08 08:54  
Blogger k_sra said...

Yeah, it is. I spent a whole evening just tryign to immitate some of the designs.

25/8/08 11:40  
Blogger Visithra said...

hope you had fun drawing them ;)

9/6/09 05:43  
Blogger Saty said...

Hi everyone.. you can check out my entry/technique ('Tile-based kolam patterns') at http://www.tamilnation.org/culture/kolam.htm

It's a pretty unusual way to construct the patterns: piece-by-piece, instead of the centuries-old way of using continuous curves.

Cheers,
Saty

10/12/09 16:47  

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