It is about textures, colours and grain, and the great shapes that wood can morph into. It is also about the traditional Indian wood artisan's genius in moving effortlessly into contemporary furniture spaces and frames while rooted in age-old skills.
Minimal geometric lines with the hint of a ‘period' curve, a touch of bamboo fretwork backing, glassed over table tops featuring Worli art in colour, dhokra dancers, and unusual Japanese chairs make for an eclectic, elegant teak furniture collection at The Central Cottage Industries Emporium's Furniture Mela.
Alongside are tiled three-piece sofa sets and chairs which are uncluttered versions of Rajasthan's ornately carved furniture style with its distinct Indian touch. Juxtaposed against heirloom Rajasthani almirahs, tables and chests, the mela provides a bridge between the old and new in the Indian furniture genre.
Accessories from Andhra
Also on display are accessories in the shape of wood-cut icons and wall hangings from Andhra.
The wood-cut collection comprises beautiful icons of deities, including a stunning Hanuman in a standing posture as well as charming birds and animal figures. Bhupinder Singh, paramparik wood artisan, imbibed his skills from his father and by observing pictures in life style magazines and books. Over the years he has journeyed from making peedhis, chowkees and charpais to carving elegant, traditional and modern furniture.
“I observe the design given by CCIE or any client in detail and connect it to the wood grain and texture. Then I take my implements and get to work.” Bhupinder is an excellent copyist and his minimalist console or abstract coffee table with tribal lion heads is as authentic an ode to modernisation as his period furniture crafted by his grandfather during the Raj days.
Some of his work is original such as the use of marble tops on side tables or making jaali-work divans.
The CCIE exhibition has an array of Bhupinder's elegant furniture creations that varies from garden, rocking and easy chairs to tables used during special occasions, chest-of-drawers, planters, etc. The tables are embellished with specially designed floral ceramic tiles or mirrors while the chairs feature anything from bamboo fret work to a contemporary rope backing.
The Furniture Mela, which began May 30, at The Central Cottage Industries Emporium, Temple Towers, Nandanam, is on till June 9.
