Living with Art

Many people love to collect paintings and other pieces of artifacts. And these items add a dimension to their rooms and tell something about the owners' taste. Some even collect quirky things. So let's see how art enhances an interior and add a touch of colour?

Vibrant Versace room-- Over the top

Mix of Classy and modern

An opulent look

Pictures grouped together...

A bedroom looks serene with a painting, a wall hanging....

or a painted cabinet can be teamed up with a statue...

 

 

 I also love the golden edged bed cover

Kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house. So do not ignore this space....

A multi-coloured print against a white background

 

Hippie posters on kitchen wall

A cute wall sticker from Ferm Living

Quirky pieces create a point of interest

Some may find it obnoxious!

Pics courtesy: Elle Decor, Apartment Therapy, New England Home, Female network, Architectural Digest, House to Home and Apartment Therapy

Wall -to-Wall

What do people put up on their walls? I often observe this when I visit someone's place. The wall decor always adds a dimension to the interiors. Besides, it reveals the tastes of the hosts or tells stories about the owners' travels to different parts of the world. 

       In India, for centuries, women used to paint the walls with colours and motifs, borrowing forms and symbols from nature-- like flowers, birds, crops, leaves, shells, fish etc-- popularly known as  Warli art, Alpona, Rangoli etc.--in different names in different Indian states. Similar forms were also popular in the western world.

While this is still being practiced in villages, we modern city-dwellers decorate our walls with paintings, embroidered pieces, graphic art, puppets, wall paper, mirror..... what else?...

Have a look....

Chinese wallpaper

Framed Butterflies

Painting framed by a mirror

Vibrant wallpaper

Serene

Masculine

Images via: Elle Decor, Apartment Therapy, Lonny Magazine,  Style at Home, Living Etc

Lotus Sutra

It sometimes happens with me that I repeatedly come across images of a particular thing and it guides me to do my blog. This week it is `Kamal' and so I present a collage of Lotus for you. But first some  facts about this flower.

     Lotus is one of the most sacred and popular symbols in Hindu religion.

       It is said that Lord Brahma emerged from the  navel of Lord Vishnu sitting on a lotus. Goddess Saraswati, the Hindu Goddess of learning, is shown sitting on a lotus. Lotus flower is a symbol of eternity, plenty and good fortune and Goddess Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth, is usually depicted with a lotus flower. Both the heart and feet are often compared with lotus in Hindu religion. Even the eyes of Lord Rama in the epic Ramayana, were described as a pair of full-blown lotus-- gentle and calm.

Melange, Chennai

      

      According to mythology, Lord Rama, before crossing the sea to rescue his wife Sita from the clutches of Ravana, was worshipping the Sea God, and needed 100 lotus flowers for the ritual. But he could find only 99 and promptly plucked his own eye, which was compared to the lotus by the sages, and offered to the God. Pleased by his devotion, the Sea God guided Rama in His mission.

Carved ceramic incence burner

Korean Pot Images webei-mono.com

            

Images courtesy: yogagoat.etsy.com

Throughout many cultures, the lotus has been a powerful image and a spiritual symbol.

    In Buddhism, the lotus refers to the Buddha. Images of Lord Buddha are typically positioned on a lotus — usually a double lotus — with petals facing both up and down. The protrusion sometimes found on the Buddha's head is also portrayed as a lotus.

               

In stone 
Courtesy Siamese Dream

 

Courtesy Lotus-sculpture

     Because the lotus rises from unclean water to blossom as a pure, uncontaminated flower, it is a symbol of purity and resurrection. In Chinese,  blooming lotus symbolizes love and harmony between husband and wife.

     The Lotus Sutra is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential sutras, or sacred scriptures, of Buddhism.

So, here are some images of lotus, moulded in different media, in different cultures.

Lotus painting 
Courtesy artsite.me

Origami Lotus 
Courtesy Butterflyeyes

Lotus carved in soap 
Courtesy soapcarvingart.com

Thai painting

Lotus Temple, Delhi



Batik Wall Hanging
Courtesy Ten Thousand Villages





Lotus lamp