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Orissa boasts of a long and rich cultural heritage. Due to the reigns of many different rulers in the past, the culture, arts and crafts of the state underwent many changes, imitations, assimilations and new creations, from time to time. The artistic skill of the Orissan artists is unsurpassable in the world. Skillful artists and craftsmen of Orissa still maintain their native art by continuously processing it to adapt to a changing taste. Be it the applique artists of Pipli or the stone carvers of Orissa, imperious progeny of artist hands carve the magnificent patterns and designs on Orissa's most renowned temples. The hereditary skills of artists has bequeathed traditional Orissan arts and crafts like weaving of Ikat, Bomkai and Sambalpuri Saree. Stone carving, applique and embroidery are equally famous, silver filigree work, palm leaf incised design, metal work, lacquered craftsmanship all have acquired a unique place world wide. The discovery that traditional artists still live and work throughout Orissa, producing various objects in many media, is an exciting part of any visit to the state.
Applique Work
'Applique', which is a French term, is a technique by which the decorative effect is obtained by superposing patches of coloured fabrics on a basic fabric, the edges of the patches being sewn in some form of stitchery. It is distinct from what is known as patch work in which small pieces of cut fabrics are usually joined side by side to make a large piece of fabric or for repairing a damaged fabric. Though the form is not unknown in other parts of India, it is Orissa and specially in Pipli that the craft has a living and active tradition continuing over centuries. While the largest number of applique craftsmen are concentrated in Pipli, there are quite a few in Puri and very small numbers in Khallikote, Parlakhemundi and Boudh areas also.
Bamboo, Cane, Reeds, Grasses, and Wood go to top
Bamboo and cane have all the fertile, lively and tactile qualities of nature's raw materials which craftspersons have successfully harnessed. The structural qualities of bamboo, its high-tensile strength and pliability have led to its widespread use for architectural purposes. Besides which, bamboo splits are woven together to make baskets of diverse shapes and sizes depending on the nature of goods they are required to carry or store. Similarly the elasticity and sturdiness of cane has been utilized in the manufacture of a variety of domestic goods, while countless local fibres and reeds are used by people with household skills to make ropes, strings, brooms and the like. These products are largely geared for local consumption. However, the potential of these materials is so great that new applications can be explored for the new customers.
Brass and Bell metal
Metal craft is perhaps the single most important craft in terms of the number of artisans engaged in its practice as in its close links with the daily lives of the people of the State. The craft is practiced by the people of the Kansari caste who can be broadly described as metalsmiths while a particular variety, dhokra, is practiced mainly by sithulias. The largest concentration of the former is Kantilo and Balakati in Puri district although fairly substantial numbers are found in Cuttack, Ganjam and Sambalpur districts.
Coir
This is coconut fibre craft made by the rural women folk of coastal Orissa. Items like toys, animal and bird figures, coconut trees and different hanging, Xmas hanging etc. are made out of this fiber along with thread, wool and some adhesive. These eco friendly toys would bring joy to the children and add beauty to the drawing room.
Dhokra
Dhokra casting, a variety of metal casting is essentially a folk craft and is limited to a few pockets of Orissa, that is Kuliana in Mayurbhanj district, Kaimatin Keonjhar district, Sadeiberni in Dhenkanal district and Haradagaria in Puri district being practiced by an aboriginal caste called sithulias. While the lost wax process is followed the raw materials used is not pure brass but contains miscellaneous scraps of other metals which give it is typically antique look. Its motifs are mostly drawn from flok culture. While among the animals, the elephant is most popular, the other motifs include human heads, kings, manas or miniature replica of measures, containers with lids, with or without locking devices, images of deities like Ganesh and Durga, and lamps and lampstands, the last being made in several intricate designs in shape of trees and branches with as many as a hundred lamps in one stand. Of late some utilitarian articles like candlestands, ash trays and penstands are also being made keeping the essential folk design intact.
Etching go to top
Etching and painting on palm leaf is one of the most ancient craft forms not only in Orissa but also in the whole country. The birth of this art form, marks the beginning of the dissemination of written words and is therefore, closely intertwined with the literary traditions of the country. While palm-leaf inscriptions and paintings are available in several states of India, it is in Orissa that the craft reached perfection and great excellence. The numerous illustrated manuscripts in the collection of the Orissa State Museum embody the rich artistic traditions of the State. This tradition continues even to-day and thrives among the handicrafts artisans of the State particularly in the districts of Puri and Cuttack.
Golden Grass
These are golden color grass items locally called ‘kaincha’ grown in swampy areas during rainy season. Mostly women folk are engaged on this craft. The product range from Table mats, Tea coasters, Boxes of different sizes, Trays and Hats etc. This craft is a good source of livelihood for the rural women artisans of Orissa.
Horn Work
Horn articles of Orissa are mystical and are blended with a superb fashion design. Their lively appearance, dynamism and animation vie with richly textured and finely fashioned from the horns of animals, mostly from buffaloes and cows that spells the names of Parlakhemundi and Cuttack. The artisans who excel in this art have used the specific texture of this material to mould all sorts of objects with a marvellous degree of fludity of movement like combs, pen stands, cigar pipes, decorative figures.
Jhoti, Chita & Muruja
The folk art of Orissa is bound up with its social and religious activities. In the month of Margasira, women folk worship the goddess Lakshmi. It is the harvest season when grain is thrashed and stored. During this auspicious occasion, the mud walls and floors are decorated with pithau(white rice paste).
Lacquer
Lacquer is the refuse of an insect called Laccifier Lacca gathered by the tribals in the forests. These are made by the women artisans of ‘Sankhari’ community of western orissa mix it with colours and apply it on small cane boxes, and terracotta figures which they make themselves. After sealing the core with several coats of lacquer, the surface is decorated with motifs borrowed from nature, geometric patterns and religious symbols. Although the visual power of colour and design combine to give ornamental effect, the artisans have not explored the area of material, form and technique. It is usually done in folk designs.
Leaf Straw and Dried flowers go to top
Tribal women have been the traditional gatherers of leaves whose delicate hues and unique qualities have been used in a multitude of ways for the manufacture of useful products. Farm labourers and cattle grazers wear hats made of dried leaves which provide protection from the sun and are water-proof. In temples and at village feasts, food is still served in leaf plates and bowls. Given the rising demand for biodegradable goods in a world which is becoming more ecologically aware, one has to find if it is possible to evolve a range of highly durable, hygienic leaf-product tableware which can meet the most stringent international quality standards.
Metal
Rich in minerals, tribal Orissa offers many variations in the types of metal used, the techniques and form of production, combining both the functional and the aesthetic, from the rivetting of the flexible brass fishes, snakes and crocodiles of Phulbani district, to the tiny bronze-cast beads shaped like grains. The rice and oil measures of Sambalpur and Bolangir made from bell metal, and Dhokra-ware both richly decorated with tribal motifs, as well as the bronze figures crafted for the Kondh tribes, are just a few examples.
Natural Dyes
The knowledge and use of vegetable and mineral dyes goes back to pre-historic times in India where, according to data collected so far, there are nearly 300 dye-yielding plants available. However, after chemical colours flooded the markets, only a small number of dyers continued with natural dyes such as indigo. Cotton yarn dyed in madder is still used by the weavers of Kotpad in Koraput district. In an age where the tide is turning against the use of synthetic dyes in the rest of the world, one needs to promote the use of eco- and wearer-friendly natural dyes in this country.
Painting
Painting, according to some scholars is as old as Orissa's sculpture. In fact profession-wise, there was originally no distinction between painting and sculpture. The Chitrakars or artists were commissioned by their patrons in all visual arts of their times. To some extent the ancient wall plasters inside the Jagannath temple complex and in the temple of Mukteshwara seem to bear out this view. Hence the three main categories of Orissan painting, the Bhitichitra or the murals, the pata or the cloth painting and the Talpatachitra or the palm leaf engraving remain more or less the same in style and subject-matter during any given period of Orissan history.
Painted Wood go to top
These items are the result of the innovations introduced to the traditional sphere of patta paintings. These are first carved on wood and then colures are applied to decorate it and give a rich bright look. The product range varies from different size of boxes, table lamp base, Alphabet Box, Photo frame, Pen Stand, Toys with animal and bird figure with stand Key ring etc.
Palm Leaf Paintings
Palm leaf paintings are very ancient in Orissa.In Orissa the Palm Leaf illustrations are mainly of two types, simple engravings or illustrations in pure line on palm leaf and engraving with colour fillings. In these engravings, colours are muted and play a very minor part. Where colours are at all applied, they are just painted either to emphasize the inscriptions, or to fill up blank space.
Paper Mache
This skill has been creatively practised by craftspersons from all over Orissa. Paper, waste cloth and different kinds of natural fibres are soaked and beaten into a pulp, then mixed with a variety of seeds and gums for strength and as protection from termites. Special clays and bio-wastes are added for body and reinforcement. The entire process results in a malleable that it requires little skill to be moulded into countless forms. However, despite its versatility this craft has remained neglected.
Pata Chitra
The folk painting known as Pattachitra (Canvas-picture ) is a living art practised by skilled traditional "Chitrakaras" .The Chitrakaras or folk painters of Puri & Raghurajpur belonging to an indigenous school of painting which dates back to a remote past. The age-old tradition is still presumed by the Chitrakaras and their womn folks. The Chitrakaras prepare a canvas by coating the cloth with a mixture of chalk and tamarind seeds. The artists paint on this leathery finish with earth and stone colors giving meaningful expressions .The pattas usually have mythological themes from Mahabharat, Ramayan and legends concerning Radhakrishna and Lord Jagannath.
Plaster
The application of plasters to her dwellings is often the rural woman's medium of creative expression reflecting both in terms of colours and symbols, the close identification of man with nature. From clay come the colours ochre, geru, charcoal grey and white which are either used naturally or mixed with pigments purchased from the markets. The images created by her are timeless yet ephemeral, with the sun and the rain taking their toll. The predominantly geometric forms - a straight line, a square covered in dots, waves, triangles pointing to the sky and downwards - can have the most disparate of meanings but the symbolism of fertility is implicit in all of them. The tools used for applying the plasters whether on hut walls or floors are basic. They use twigs, fingers, whole hands and rags.
Potery go to top
Though there are very few potters among the tribals, the tribal people extend their patronage to the other potters. The elemental quality of earth as a substance has long been used by them in the execution of both ritual and utilitarian objects. A variety of roof tiles, utensils such as pots, bowls, plates and jars, and cooking stoves meet specific requirements of daily life. Simultaneously the potter creates votive offerings in strong forms of bulls, elephants and horses as well as terracotta temples and toys.
Sabai Grass
These are made by weaving ropes of dried Sabaigrass. Usually made by rural women folk of eastern and northern orissa as an income generating scheme. These bags are light and durable and sometimes color is also used in the rope.
Sand Arts
In Orissa ,a unique type of art form is developed at Puri . But it spreads all over the world . To carve a sand sculpture , the raw material is the only clean and fine grained sand mixed with water . With the help of this type of sand and with the blessings of God and by the magic of fingures , an artist can carve a beautiful and attractive sculpture on the beach.
Santhal and Saora Paintings
Tribal paintings are like prayers that become part of the offerings made to gods, ancestors and spirits. Members of the Saora tribe draw ritualistic pictographs on the inner walls of their mud dwellings called 'Ittlans'. The icons are painted to preserve the abundance of the crops, avert disease, honour the dead, promote fertility, honour the tutelaries and so on. The spirit is then invoked and invited to occupy the one dimensional painting which actually represents a house made for it. Once captured therein, it is propitiated with appropriate chantings. The icons are a curious amalgamation of an early memory and contemporary impressions. Since they are basically the expressions of an agricultural community there is an emphasis on nature, the great outdoors and also on the cycle of ploughing, sowing and harvesting. But as the outside world increasingly impinges on their lives, cars, chairs, tables and planes have begun to appear innocently in the paintings, and are offered as vehicles for their gods in hierarchical order.
Stone Utensils
Artisans practising the craft of stone carving in Orissa have remained largely tradition-bound while producing objects of ritualistic, decorative and practical use. Turned utensils for both cooking and serving and artefacts of tourist interest are made in Khiching located on the borders of Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar districts, from a semihard, grey stone which takes on a deep, dark polish, while beads and figurines are carved out of soft stones available in many shades of orange in Phulbani district.
Stone Carving go to top
This form of art is one of the most ancient crafts and practiced in almost all parts of orissa in different forms but usually traditional and mythological figure are made. The Sun Temple of orissa its intricate sculpture and delicate carvings on the red stone (sand stone) depicts the superb workmanship of the artisans of orissa. The base of stone varies from soap stone, serpentine stone, sand stone and granite. Product diversification has led the trend into producing some utilitarian items like candle stand, pen stand, paper weight, bookend and lamp base etc.
Tasar Painting
These are exotic ancient painting on tassar (silk) which is a natural fabric or on hand made canvas (Patta). As a religion art form it evolved from the temple rituals, more specifically from the temple of Jagannath at Puri and else where in Orissa. These paintings potray a large variety of themes, from religious and mythical stories to exotic and raga (musical) narratives.
Theater Crafts
The Desiya Natya of tribal Orissa derives its distinctive style in some part from Prahlada Natakams and Jatras of the Hindus. Its colourful costumes - embroidered head-dresses and painted masks which adorn the key actors, and the use of imaginative props are a craft in themselves. Masks carved out of papier mache and sholapith, the weightless bark of a water plant, represent various gods, goddesses, demons and animals.
Wood Carving
A special charm of Orissa wood carving is the blending of folk and classical forms.Wood carving in Orissa has both utilitarian and aesthetic aspects. Gambhari, Piasal, Teak are used for this purpose. The wood carvers make a variety of decorative & utilitarian objects.
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