Art is to me the glorification of the human spirit, and as such it is the cultural documentation of the time in which it is produced.

Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it.

With that caption & this starting line for the blog, you would’ve guessed that the content would be about Vincent Van Gough (Expressive Dutch master painter 1853-1890) or Leonardo da Vinci (Renaissance master painter and inventor 1452-1519) or Pablo Picasso (Leading modern artist of the 20th Century 1881-1973) or may be Raja Ravivarma (All time famous Indian artist). Sorry to hurt ur ego… its not about any of them. My blog talks about more simple yet brilliant art I’ve ever known. Read on, I won’t let u down.

Born & brought up in Coimbatore, India has implanted in me a thirst for knowing different cultures, life styles and people. Once famous as the Manchester of South India (it still is called so), Coimbatore has attracted people from all over India and with them the varied cultures.

Wondering y im talkin abt cultures here? Though I‘ve not traveled much, I am and will always be a wanderer… searchin to feast my eyes, heart & soul with new ideas, practices, etc. Until recently, I had no clue about the cultures of my ancestral homeland (I was told my ancestors were from another part of India and not from TamilNadu, which I respect so much). I don’t regret that either. What my birth place holds is more than enough to quench my autumn thirst for witnessing people & their habits… or should I say their ethnicity.

Of the varied traditions followed in TamilNadu, the one that touched my heart & brain most is the practice of drawing KOLAM (in Tamil).

For those of u who are new to this term--> The colorful Kolam tradition dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization (2500 B.C). Kolam is a form of design or pattern drawn with coarse rice flour on the floor with bare fingers using predetermined dots by female members of the family in front of their home, especially near the threshold. Kolams were often drawn with rice flour since it served as a food source to nature's creatures like ants and crows, a daily tribute to harmonious co-existence. Rice flour is seen as an offering to Lakshmi, the goddess of rice and wealth.

A Kolam is a sort of painted prayer -- a line drawing composed of curved loops, drawn around a grid pattern of dots. The dots are either connected together to make a pattern or loops are drawn encircling the dots to complete a motif. A Kolam looks more or less like a sand painting on the floor.They are generally symmetric. The patterns range between geometric and mathematical line drawings around a matrix of dots to free form art work and closed shapes. Folklore has evolved to mandate that the lines must be completed so as to symbolically prevent evil spirits from entering the inside of the shapes, and thus are they prevented from entering the inside of the home. (Excerpt from my INET world)

All through my school & college days, we lived in a government owned residential flat (My parents were very dedicated & sincere govt. employees till their last day in service). Where we lived, only the ground floor residents had the privilege to‘ve lovely gardens and front yards for themselves. And along with it their happiness in decorating their yard with lovely, intricate, sometimes complicated Kolams. Every morning, on my way to school, I used to admire that lovely art on the grainy ground. When I saw how beautifully they were, I used to think y I dnt know how to do it. One such holiday morning, lookin at my gloomy face, my granny explained the secret of the art I luv so much.

She told me, that when she used to be a kid herself, every morning all the women in her village draw Kolams on the ground with white rice powder. Through the day, though the drawings gets erased; new ones were made the next day. It was a way to tell that though things can change the beauty of a thing, perseverance is needed to recreate the beauty again & again. Granny said, the Kolams are generally drawn while the surface is still damp so that it is held better. Her lesson from this was that one should prepare the necessary ground before tryin to achieve a masterpiece. Finally was her advice for fitness from these lines, dots & curves. The shine in her eyes when she started to speak abt this cannot be underestimated. The benefits for the artist to bend down each morning – she said, is to help her digestive system, reproductive organs and to help overall stretching of the body. It used to be a matter of pride to be able to draw large complicated patterns without lifting the hand off the floor (or unbending to stand up). My granny’s favorite month is the month of "Margazhi" (late Dec & early Jan), and mine too since then, ‘coz all the gals in would then showcase their skills by covering the entire width of the road with one big Kolam. It was indeed a test of mastery, as one cannot repeat a pattern for 30 days.

Wouldn’t then been so much fun. Wish I was born during that era when drawing on the roads were appreciated & encouraged so much. When I was still in my primary class, mom introduced me to my first Kolam.. drawn with juz 4 dots and one continuous curve and I was hooked to it for life. The numerous papers that got erased & redrawn & torn, if could testify, would tell about my attempts to master it. Every time I thought I’ve mastered it, I was introduced to a more complicated & interesting one.

My luv and respect grew to a higher level after my first visit to the temple town Chidambaram in TamilNadu. Known world wide for the famous Natrajar temple, I believe should be marked in the world map with a bigger insinuation for the various simple, humble lanes of the town made pretty & catchy with those different Kolams on every door step. Those that I saw there were nothing like the ones I was so used to. These were very different and portrayed a whole new meaning for the Kolams & the meanings they convey.
I like watching them so much… some times I feel they actually talk to me… reach out to me & say something or give me an answer to a question which I’ve not yet realized is haunting me deep within.

Those are the by-gone days when I would settle down in the comfoy of my bed with a notebook and a pencil & get entangled in their intricacies & learn slowly to untangle myself from its loops in a neat clear picture. Now, when I think of those pleasant memories… I wish I could go back to my younger days when a dot & line could make me happy, relax, think, decide… of all - be myself.
If only I could be innocent & free as before… I’m all ready to fall in luv with it all over again… and again… and again.


I don't believe in an art that is not born out of man's need to open his heart
.::: Edvard Munch :::
(Don't ask me who Edvard is... dnt know much abt him... except he has shared beautiful quotes about art)