Submitted by: Minesh Modi

This season get products made of art and craft materials that enhances the whole look of the office or home it dwells in.

Imagine it’s the corporate gifting season & you get a choice to choose between a splendid crafted vase that will suit best in the corner of your cabin or common pen set box as a gift from your boss. Which one would you prefer? Though the answer is tough as individual taste cannot be defined, most of the time one would forget the practicality of the pen which will be applicable for use in the office and definitely go for the beautiful vase that will envy as well as attract the eyes of many entering the cabin. Think about it won’t you? This is because the rich tapestry of Indian arts and crafts is something, which is not a hidden fact. India from the beginning is known for creating amazing pieces in arts and crafts, which has left the whole world speechless. The elegance of traditional arts and crafts mirrors the Indian heritage in its past and present flowing into eternity. Today the great Indian arts and crafts reveal it’s breathtaking variety of products, combining aesthetic appeal with utilitarian value. To satisfy modern tastes and meet international demand, design institutes have been giving a new look to these traditional arts and crafts. A variety of products are available today in all regions spread across India. There is a collection on different craft traditions of India, which are classified under categories like brass, bronze, terracotta, shell craft, jute and coir, leather, stone, glassware, toys, etc. Be it the Madhubani and Kishangarh paintings, or for that matter the assorted paraphernalia of woodcarvings, stuffed hangings, purses and handbags, there is no doubt that every art and craft tradition of India exudes a charm and originality of its own and pristine beauty that has remained untouched by time. The flow of people to and from India has stimulated many new trends in the arts.

Splendor of Metal

Metalware has found a new expression in the context of Andhra Pradesh with exquisite pieces of sheet-metal art. Some of the beauties made out of it consist of a whole range of utility-cum-decorative items like plant pots, vases, wall decorations and stationery items. Nowadays there is an extensive use of brass, bronze, copper, iron and bell metal in India. Ornaments, utensils, icons and figures are made out different metals. These objects can be embellished through punching, engraving, inlaying and enameling. The Indian metal smith is known for various methods of metalworking and has created forms with vision, conception and sensitivity. The skills of artisans can be seen in caskets, vases and trays manufactured throughout India, which has a huge demand in abroad too. In North India, copper and brass lamps are made in a variety of shapes and styles. The pahaldar lamps and jaipuri lamps are the examples. Jaipuri engravers produce lacquered and engraved brassware in an amazing variety of articles like hanging lamps, boxes, bowls, picture frames and plates. Brass metal is one another material which has gained popularity over a period of time, brass casters often itinerant tinkers and serve their clients by creating domestic utensils, distinctive images of their protective deities and animal mounts to be offered to them. Bronze’s importance over the years has been seen by many, virtually all Indian casting in bronze is done using the cire perdue (lost wax) process. No mould survives the process, so each piece is unique. Both the literature and the metal images excavated by archaeologists establish the fact that the art of bronze casting has been continuously practiced in India for more than five million years. Copper vessels of Kashmir with floral designs and calligraphy shows excellent artisanship too. Karnataka is also famous for the bidri work in which silver inlay work is done against dark metal background.

Andhra Pradesh also has its claim on some of the most distinguished crafts like the Kalamkari work with its origins traced back to antiquity. Kalamkari, with its resist process and application of vegetable dyes has made an impact in various parts of the world. The Kalamkari craft offers themes in the form of small and large decorative panels ideal for household and office decoration.

Superlative work in Fragile Glass

Another art seen to be exemplary accepted in India and world over is the rich art of Glassware. The Mughals in India perceived the aesthetic potential of glass. One can find beautifully crafted glass articles like bowls, vases, tumblers, bottles for fragrance etc. Also new designs and exquisite shapes in a variety of rich colors keep blossoming. Glass items such as phials, jars, lamp chimneys are attractively made and the shape have a wide range. Glass animals are also becoming popular among the corporate industry as apart of corporate gifting. Varanasi specializes in glass beads, which is used for decorations in many houses in Patna, Varanasi and in many other places throughout India. The oriental shapes, designs and typical Indian colors in glass make Indian glassware distinct.

Pot out poetry in art

Clay craft is probably the earliest of man’s creations in India. Clay pottery is an ancient art and there are different types like glossy and shiny types made of very fine fabric, paper pottery, painted pottery etc available to suit individual decor. Apart from normal pottery work materials made from Terracotta is also popular among the people. Terracotta is a porous and brittle material formed by the low heat of traditional Indian kiln. Molding objects by hand or on the wheel and firing them in an open oven produces most terracotta art and pottery. The terracotta tradition of creating figures of deities on ceremonial and auspicious occasions brings out the religious Indian nature of their pottery. Beautiful vases, pots, vessels etc useful for many purposes are also made out from this art.

Charm in Dry Sticks

Last but not the least products made of cane and bamboo is in a way artistic models by itself. Most of the domestic requirements are made of these materials. Hats, baskets, cane vessels, cane belts – woven and plain, bamboo mugs with carvings and a wide variety of ornaments and jewelry items are some of it’s examples. Today this product has stepped in the world of decorative packaging too. It is ideal to gift chocolates or ornaments in a decorative bamboo box and tie the box with a satin ribbon on top to add a touch of glamour to the box. It is said to be the perfect corporate gift one can ever think of. Many other decorative pieces, stationery products like penholder etc are also made from ever serving bamboo and cane sticks.

Gift it with Pride

All these arts and crafts material and products serve as best gifts ideal to be given to family and loved ones or to be used as effective corporate gifts for promotions of your company. Their beauty and elegance is bound to bring the receiver joy and leave a powerful impression of your personality and status in their mind. These aesthetically designed pieces are ideal to be given during festival seasons like Christmas, New Year or during important meetings as momentous or when one conducts significant events or during such other relevant occasions.

Get the taste of this contemporary art and craft now and get mesmerize in its rich culture with the others across the globe.

About the Author: Minesh Modi is editor of Giftsnaccessories Magazine, a division of Netlink Solutions (India) Ltd published from India.

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