A beautifully sculpted 3-4 ft tall Swamimalai bronze Ganesha, Parvathi and Krishna along with Rajasthani ‘art’ furniture vie for attention at an exhibition of Objet d’ Art and Furniture currently on view at Central Cottage Industries Emporium, Nandanam. The bronze icons which follow the imagery of Chola iconography to the last detail are definitely for the connoisseur. The movement and restraint so subtly captured in the classical Chola bronze can be seen in each of the icons here.
Over the years, Jodhpur’s artisans have reinvented the shisham wood jharokha, chowki and diwan into a line of contemporary furniture with a period look. Huge carved almirahs, bars, chest-of-drawers of varying sizes and book cases are ample testimony to the skills of these craftspersons.
The bold flowing carving follows the folk idiom. The embossed copper and brass work on the furniture is exceptional. A few rustic pieces have a natural and untreated look. Well sculpted brass floral and animal motifs along with those of Lakshmi and Saraswati embossed on the furniture give them an antique finish. Copper and brass also come together in subtle motifs. Particularly interesting are wooden furniture covered with a white metal sheet.
The exhibition concludes tomorrow at The Cottage Industries Emporium, Temple Tower, 672 Anna Salai, Nandanam.
