Dhurrie Rugs/Magic Carpets

Third graders have also been learning about art from India. They looked at examples of dhurrie rugs and created their own with cut paper and yarn.

-Dhurries are flat, woven rugs used as floor coverings.


-They've been made for centuries in India.
-They are made with bright colors, simple designs like stripes, geometric shapes.


-They are woven out of camel and goat hair.


-Royal families would use dhurri rugs to decorate the floors of their palaces.

Rangoli Designs from India

Rangoli

-designs from India-

Rangoli is the art of drawing images and designs on the floor with colored sand, rice, or flour. It is a form of folk art from India and stands as a sign of welcome and thought to bring good luck. The designs are geometric and proportioned. Patterns are made with fingers. They can be any size ranging from the size of a doormat to covering an entire room. Rangoli is designed with the help of dots, which are joined to form a pattern. The pattern is then filled with colors.

In India, this art is temporary. Each design stays only for a day or two, as it is often redone as part of a daily routine. One of the most popular arts among Indian women, rangoli is an age old custom. Designs are passed down through the generations, some of them being hundreds of years old.

Fifth grade students connected Math and Art and created these symmetrical designs inspired by Rangoli images. They were able to use sand to fill their designs.

Banyan Trees

This project was taken from the book Dynamic Art Projects for Children by Denise M. Logan. Like many of the projects in the book, the children really enjoyed it and the results were impressive!

Students began by learning about the Banyan tree, which originates in India. This tree has many trunks because the branches are constantly sending roots to anchor in the soil. For this project, we talked about positive and negative space. We blended colors that were next to one another on the color wheel to fill the negative space around our trees! Fourth graders did a great job on this project.

Elephants from India

This is one of my favorite lessons to teach! Indian elephants were used long ago to carry members of the royal family. They are still ridden in processions at important festivals and are decorated elaborately! First graders made their beautiful works of art with oil pastel and watercolor paints. A great book to use is Elephant Dance by Theresa Heine.