Chantal Jumel

Kerala Kolam, "The Women artists of Nurani"

The doors of the sanctuary open and the priest pays homage to the divine image. In the soft glow of the oil lamps, as the devotees melt into prayer, the kolam, like visual hymns, captivate hearts in silence.

Kalam/Kerala

Kerala Kalam, " Paying homage to god Vettakkorumakan" — part 4

Accompanied by the powerful sounds of drums (chenda) and oboes (kuzhal), the oracle, adorned with a red cloth around the loins, emerges from the inner sanctum, wielding a straight sword symbolising the divinity.

Kalam/Kerala

Kerala Kalam, "Painting Vettakkorumakan, the hunter-god" — part 3

Like a jeweller, the painter creates fleeting ornaments that will adorn the sturdy neck, arms, wrists, and ankles of the sylvan deity. Another painter meticulously paints the peacock feather ocelli on either side of the deity, creating the illusion of a majestic mane.

Kalam/Kerala

Kerala Kalam, “Visiting the Kalamandalam School” — part 2

K.P Ravishankar, is waiting to explain the day's schedule, which includes a visit to the Kalamandalam, an institution founded in 1930 by the poet Vallathol Narayana Menon. Over the years, the school has become one of the main centres for the study of classical Indian arts.

Kalam/Kerala

Kerala Kalam, "On my way to the village of Paruthipulli" — part 1

Kodaikanal is also home to one of India's most important rose collections. Its recently deceased founder, M.S. Viraraghavan, was an internationally renowned rose breeder. Girija, his wife left everything behind to settle with her husband in this town with its ideal climate for roses.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, "What future for Hazaribagh paintings?" — part 6

We must admit that these wonders of human creativity are fading away in the villages year by year. However, these tribal paintings, in their paper form, have travelled the world, giving rise to exhibitions or live performances in prestigious museums.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Sohrai festival "Painting aripan to welcome the cattle" — part 5

When the liquid rice paste is ready for use, the women trace a graphic path from outside the house to the stable. If the latter is in the inner courtyard of the house, the line runs across the courtyard to the entrance of the stable.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "Diwali at the Sanskriti Centre" — part 4

As night falls, the house is buzzing with activity as everyone waits for darkness to light the oil lamps in the centre's three houses. The children, grandchildren and my hostess Elisabeth prepare the clay lamps on a tray and place them in key locations.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "Painting the walls for Sohrai" — part 3

In Hazaribagh, this art of scratching is the hallmark of the Kurmi tribal farming community to which Rudhan Devi belongs. I watch as she prepares a new section of a wall to be coated with manganese oxide, or “kali-mati,” mixed with water. This deep black pigment was used in cave paintings.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "Painting the walls for Sohrai" — part 2

The autumn rains have receded and the married women, whose names are always followed by the title Devi in honour of the goddess, are once again whitewashing the walls of their homes to restore the surfaces on which they will paint.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "An endangered heritage" — part 1

Upon leaving the city, the beautiful hills and lush green nature immediately dominate the landscape. Cows graze in the shade of tall evergreen sal trees (Shorea robusta), while the paddy fields, which are dry in November, are ripening.

Vaishnava kolam

Iyengar kolam and saris auction

I could spend hours contemplating these rhythmic, abstract graphs, brimming with imaginary suggestions. The choreography of the body and the fingers is so interwoven that you quickly forget where the dance graphics begins and ends.

Quai Branly Museum/kolam workshop

An introduction to Kolam at the Musée du Quai Branly, Paris

Introduction to Kolam with Chantal Jumel

Chandrayaan-3 mission

India on the moon "Kolam to celebrate Chandrayaan-3"

At the moment of the moon landing, applause and shouts of joy followed one another in the control room. The next day, a similar frenzy gripped my kolam artist friends, who gave free rein to their imagination to capture the event.

Sanjhi/Vrindavan

Vrindavan sanjhi, "Stencil art to celebrate the divine couple Radha Krishna" — part 3

The beauty of sanjhi lies in the perfect precision with which the stencils are cut, and the skill of the painter in placing them one after the other without the design and background blurring.

Sanjhi/Vrindavan

Vrindavan Sanjhi , "A tradition shrouded in mystery." — part 2

Unlike other floor paintings traditions in India, these are, to my knowledge, the only ones to be created using handmade paper stencils and coloured powders.

Sanjhi/Vrindavan

Vrindavan Sanjhi , " In the footsteps of Radha and Krishna" — part 1

A rare form of ephemeral painting known as sanjhi developed in the temples of Mathura and Vrindavan in the 17th century, becoming an integral part of Vaishnavite religious traditions. According to an ancient belief, almost all the temples in this region used to practice this votive art.

Chita/jhoti/Odisha

Odisha chita/jhoti, " Painting the walls and the floors " — part 4

Considered auspicious, the patterns dedicated to the Goddess, as in other parts of India, are often floral, with a preference for lotuses and footprints, to guide Goddess Lakshmi home.

Chita/jhoti/Odisha

Odisha chita/jhoti, "Temples of Bhubaneswar " — part 3

Getting to know the city of Bhubaneswar starts with the exploration of its temples nestled in the four corners of a booming city. In the taxi that took me to the shrines, I noticed the profusion of plants, sculptures and murals with various themes that lined the city streets.

Patachitra/Odisha

Odisha chita/jhoti, "Visiting Bhubaneswar and Raghurajpur" — part 2

Patachitra paintings are known to illustrate mythological stories and portraits of the divine triad of the Jagannath (Lord of the universe) temple. In Odisha, God Krishna is worshipped in this form along with his brother Balabhadra and his half-sister Subhadra.

Chita/jhoti/Odisha

Odisha chita/jhoti, "Arts and Crafts in Bhubaneswar, " — part 1

After three years of seclusion at home, drawing, writing, editing videos and photographs, frustration finally gave way to the joy of travelling to India again. I had planned to document other forms of Indian murals and floor paintings, but to my surprise, I was offered a research trip to Odisha.

Pulli kolam/Kolam with dots

Kolam notebooks

Kamalavathy Kannan has designed two notebooks for you; one with idukku pulli, or dots are aligned in staggered rows and another one with ner pulli or dots lined up in neat rows.

Navaratri/Celebrate the Goddess

Navaratri kolam to celebrate the Goddess

Navaratri, literally "Nine Nights", zealously celebrates the manifestations of the female creative force called Shakti Devi. This festival, which goes by different names in various parts of India, lasts for nine nights and ten days.

Bibliography/Ephemeral art

Kerala Kalam, "Books, and references"

A non exhaustive selection of books on Kerala floor paintings called Kalamezhuttu in English and French

Alpana/alpona Bengal

Bengal alpona, Santiniketan photographic memories

A collection of photographs on the graphic art of alpona from former students and teachers of Santiniketan in Bengal.