Wood carving is found all over India. We can see carved wooden pillars and doorways in temples and palaces across the country.and now, wood carving is mostly found in functional articles like furniture, bowls, boxes, lamp stands, etc. Depending on the availability, different types of woods were used for wood carving, and for making decorative wood installations. The origins of the craft can be traced back to the late 19th century which is  Closely associated with architecture, wood carving incorporated the design vocabulary of architectural carvings.


 HOW TO GET STARTED

First Select wood that is appropriate size and shape. For bigger art pieces more than one piece of wood can be used. Always Softer wood is easier to carve, but will also get damage easier. Then  next is shaping process which is done  using gouge  of various sizes. The gouge is a curved blade that can remove large portions of wood smoothly.For harder woods, the sculptor may use a chisel and mallet, similar to a stone carver. For making Smaller sculptures they use knife and for making  larger pieces they might require the use of a saw. No matter what wood is selected or tool used, the wood sculptor must always carve either across or with the grain of the wood, never against the grain.  Once the general shape is made, the carver starts using variety of chisels for creating details. They use a V tool for making fine lines or decorative cuts.The finer polishing is done with abrasive paper. After completing the carving ad finishing the artist starts sealing and coloring the woods using various  natural oils inorder to protect those woods from dirt and moisture. They use gloss varnish to get a shiny surface. And then they will do a final coating with a layer of wax which protects the wood and gives  shiny  soft  lustrous sheen


Types of tools used for wood carving is as follows
1. The carving knife: a specialized knife used to pare, cut, and smooth wood.
2. The gouge: a tool with a curved cutting edge used in a variety of forms and 
3. The coping saw, a small saw that is used to cut off chunks of wood at once.
4. The chisel, large and small, whose straight cutting edge is used for lines and cleaning up flat surfaces.
5. The V-tool used for parting, and in certain classes of flat work for emphasizing lines.
6. The veiner: a specialized deep gouge with a U shaped cutting edge.
sharpening equipment, such as various stones and a strop, necessary for maintaining edges.


ABOUT THE ARTISAN
MR. Ram Bhaskar is 42 year old wood carving art craftsman comes from a family of traditional craftsmen in uttar pradesh. While his forefathers carved ivory and sandalwood. Ram mostly uses palm wood. He has a experience of 38 years and works opposite max store, near tvs showroom, at Kottivakkam in ECR, chennai. 

The craft of serial light cutout is being practiced in many parts all over the world, Tamilnadu among them has the most significance for the craft. This craft is a part of the culture in Tamilnadu, The practice of Serial light cutouts began when kollywood stepped into commercial phase, movies were made to make money. Movies moved on from art to commercial, during this phase hero worship spread rapidly among fans, which turned the fans, as well as the stars, turn into rivals. Fans made paintings of their actor in gigantic sizes in theaters to show off that their actor is the best among all.

Paintings were made by splitting the image into many small pieces, painted separately and put in a structure which holds them together. But it was only visible in daylight, to make it also visible in night fans decided to use serial light cutouts which gloriously stood out in theaters during evening shows. From this point, this art of making cutouts from serial lights was made commercial. For the same reasons, this crafts was used in temple festivals and political party meetings. It acted an indication for the event which happened in that place.


The process of this crafts begins with sourcing bamboos which are already cut and ready to use. The required image is scaled and divided into parts using grids, The floor in the workshop have grids engraved which make the construction of bamboo grid easier. The image is sketched on the floor and grid constructed over them. Thinner strands of flexible bamboos are used to make the outlines and serial lights are fixed on them. Once various parts are created it is put together in the structure constructed. The artisans are electricians who also possess the aesthetic knowledge, the craft not necessarily goes on from father to child, but anyone interested can take up the craft. Materials used are bamboos, serial lights and GI wires to secure them. Currently, the craft is facing rapid development as it is used for many events.

Location of the workshop – Porur
Artisan – Hari
Contact - 09840561225

Documented by S V Aravindh Raj

Chola Pith is a kind of plant that grows in water. It is generally found in abundance in tanks, lakes and swamps in South India. After removing the impurities by washing it in water, clean pith is obtained through which several artists find it very fascinating and pleasing to the eye which are manufactured as images, structures, temple gopurams and mandapams. The patronage of the public is requested to make it a flourishing Cottage Industry.


Post the naxal period in Bengal, once after the social scenario was stabilized, people slowly started celebrating Durga Pooja at an extremely normal scale and did not have the affordability to invest in it. During this time, the idols became the reflection of their own state of mind and hence they kept their ornamentation minimalistic and pure white in Chola or Shola Pith ( as referred to in Bengal) reflecting the image if single Bengali women in a cotton ‘tant’ saree. The ornamentation done to the Durga idol done in shola pith, is knows as ‘Daak er saaj’ and considered to be the purest and indegenious forms of ornamentation. It exceeds a simplicity and ornamentation that of a woman rightly respected who everyone can connect with , such is the respect and admiration that people of Bengal havefor Goddess Durga. This is the period when Shola Pith ‘Daak er Saaj’ became known and is still practiced in many parts of Bengal, it being the traditional craft ornamentation for religious purpose.

In the present time, we still find normal clusters not only in Bengal but also in the southern part of the country who still practice this craft and make it very famous among the young generations. Coming down to Tamil Nadu in the south from West Bengal, this beautiful while milky craft is still practiced in a normal town of Kumbakonam. This town is 265 kms away down south from Chennai and is reached by travelling via Trichy and Tanjavur by train or bus.


Mr.Chokkalingam, who plays a major role in keeping the craft alive among the younger generations and making this place known for the making and the manufacturing of this craft. His workshop“Prakasam Pith works” is located at a walking distance on the 16/25 Head Post Office Road nearby to the Kumbakonam Railway Junction. A National Award winner in 1985, titled as THE MASTER CRAFTSMAN IN PITH by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India in Madras, he has elevated this craft to a next level and today, he is known as the only person who practiced this craft in the state only as he started his practice at the age of 10. He talks about the craft, he tells us how much of skill it needs to attain perfection.

The raw materials that are used to make the end product are long branches of the Chola Pith, along with different knives and fevicol as an adhesive. The main raw material is the Chola Pith and the only process to carve out the pith is by knife. There are different names given to the Pith based on the geographical location. It is called as “netti” in Tamil, ‘bendu’ in Telugu and ‘Kadachi’ in Malayalam. The pith is green in the beginning which is easily available in water and is cleaned properly. It is first dried in the sun for a week after removing it from the water and then it is removed and cleaned well with a cloth. The pith has a tiny hole in the between for the water to pass through it and so it has a natural shine when the pith is cut through the central hole. The monuments or the buildings are made by cutting the pith in rectangular pieces and joining them together by fevicol and carving out the desired design. Previously, the mixture of flour, but presently only fevicol is used. The pith is originally off white but it can be coloured based on the customer’s demand.

The time duration of the carving process depends upon the size ,shape and the number of days depending upon the desired design. The time taken for the normal designs to be made are two to four days whereas for bigger monuments, the carving process takes place for fifteen days. The sizes vary from four inches to two feet in height and the price is based on the size.
This was an entirely beautiful experience altogether from travelling to meeting new people, experiencing the food in Kumbakonam, but this industry sometimes also has faced a lot of drawback in the sales due to the decrease in obtaining the raw materials. As the main raw material comes from the very natural element water, and as it was available in abundance 20 years ago , there was no such problem faced by the industry. But now due to the scarcity of water in the river Kaveri, in Tamil Nadu, the raw materials are now found in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh and face a major problem in the delivery of the product and the sales market. But now that it has a strong base, it promises to get better each time in the matter of sales and delivery and make this industry grow bigger.

Contact:
Mr.Chokkalingam 
Prakasam Pith works
 16/25 Head Post Office Road, Kumbakonam

Documented by Tanvi Desai