Kalam/Kalamezhuttu Kerala Kalam, "Colours and emotions" — part 4 Panchavarnam, five colours for the kalam paintings are more than just an aesthetic choice; they convey concepts as well as feelings. The five powders are chosen according to the attributes of each god or goddess. The iconography refers to myths and legends.
Kalam/Kalamezhuttu Kerala Kalam,"Measuring and sketching the body"— part 3 Kalam paintings are not born of the priest's or ritual painter's own imagination; they are drawn according to precise rules, which include specifications about shapes and colours. A kalam begins, in most cases, by tracing an east-west vertical line called brahmasutra.
Kalam/Kerala Kerala Kalam, "Hand drawing techniques"— part 2 In Kalamezhuttu images, the hands constitute drawing and colouring tools. The simplest gesture involves holding the powder between thumb and index and allowing it to drop smoothly onto the floor to complete dots or lines of varying thickness.
Kalam/Kerala Kerala Kalam, "Draw and sing the paintings" — part 1 Almost invisibles, the floor paintings called kalam do not expose themselves to the morning walker's gaze. They are drawn in privacy and focus the attention of the family within the home and of devotees in the temple premises.
Kalam/Kerala Kerala Kalam, Pulluvanpattu "To protect mother and child"— part 1 Although Western medicine has long been part of the Kerala landscape, there are still communities of ritual painters whose hereditary task equates them to medicine-men. Pulluvanpattum was once an exorcism and its ceremonial paintings were designed for an essentially therapeutic purpose.
