The Spanish Art Village

We recently had friends over last week and while we were strolling around at Balboa park, we happened to get escorted by the flowering bougainvilleas and multi-colored cobblestoned courtyard into The Spanish Art Village. 

Patrons, art lovers or even just curious folks get an opportunity to discover demonstrations of art being made here in this little artist community that hosts over 200 local artists. The quaint buildings and courtyards that make up the Spanish Village Art Center were originally built in 1935 to depict a charming old village in Spain for the second California Pacific International Exposition. One will come across local painters, sculptors, metalsmiths, jewelry designers, clay artists, gourd artists, photographers, printmakers, fiber artists, basket makers, mixed-media artists, glass artists, enamel artists and many more arts all at this one little heaven. It truly was a treat to talk to some of the most beautiful artists and see them create some of the most enticing pieces of art. Although we were not allowed to click pictures of the finished art works, which i totally understand, sharing some images of the courtyard and an artist at work. 

Our youngest visitor and art enthusiast sat through one of the artists painting demonstration and bought his work for her own room. How thrilled she was about her shopping that day! :)

I think we spent about three hours right here that day. It was an enticing experience and i look forward to some of the classes they host to teach various forms of art to enthusiasts like me :). This artist here says that he has been painting since the age of 9 and has been living by it since!

Artist/Artisan Feature : Pure Ghee Designs

I was just browsing through the list of our eco-friendly product producers and came across Aditi Prakash's work. Amongst all her beautiful work, this innovative squiggly twist given to the Sabai grass basket - the material we spoke about this morning caught my eye first. It's an amazing adaptation of the material that otherwise has been used more conventionally than artistically. I had to but share it with yall! 

Squiggly Sabai Grass 

Basket Close Up

Design Alternate

Aditi has established a research, design and production studio called Pure Ghee Designs that aims to deliver exceptional cultural content and celebrate the Indian design aesthetic. Here is a glimpse of some of her other colorful work. 

Bags made from different cloth types

Coin pouches made of Silk and scraps

 Colorful Mobile Cases

Charms made from scraps

Aditi was shortlisted for the YCE Awards this year by the British Council. She says modestly "Did not expect this! Especially because Pure Ghee Designs (the company) is less than a year old." Well, Aditi, you definitely seem very deserving! :) Loved your work!

Artisan group feature : Norbulingka

Keeping Tibetan Culture and Values Alive 

Norbulingka products available at TGE

Norbulingka is dedicated to handing down tradition and restoring standards by providing training, education and employment for Tibetans. It supports an environment in which Tibetan community and family values can flourish. It reconciles the tradition creatively and respectfully with the modern, and seeks to create an international awareness of Tibetan values and their expression in art and literature. They create high quality products using traditional Tibetan techniques like appliqué, woodwork, sculpture and thangka paintings. 

Applique work Shoulder Bags

Gem Boxes

Gem Box details

Applique Cushion Covers

Small note for Kitsch Lovers

If you recall,  we had featured Indian Kitsch by Aarohi Singh some time back. 
Aarohi is having an exhibition of her art at
Page Turners Bookstore, 89 Kannan Building, 
MG Road, Bangalore.

from the 25th November to 28th November 2010.
So, if you are in Bangalore during those days, do visit the 'Art by Aarohi' exhibit.

Meanwhile, here is a small glimpse of the exhibit. Enjoy!

Settle down, drink, eat. Lather, rinse, repeat - Mondys @ Mumbai

Cafe Mondegar, also popularly know as 'Mondys' to regulars, is one of the coolest hang outs in Mumbai! On our recent trip back to India, that's where we'd go to cool off from the harsh Mumbai heat! It's warm ambiance - the cool wall cartoons, the popular juke box (that has endless replays of the Eagles song 'Hotel California') and a pitcher of chilled Indian beer... mmmm heaven! 

Mondegar stands at the lip of Colaba Causeway  (a heaven for street side shoppers!) offering blessed refuge to anyone too lazy to bother wading down the entire stretch and being crawled upon by hagglers to sell you cheap stuff. Mondys is more of an all-day cafe than bar; in fact, its alcohol selection is restricted to a selection of beers and now wine. So get a cold one (or a pitcherful of cold ones if you’re in it for the long haul) and soak in the downtown Mumbai buzz. You'l have to squeeze yourself into one of the sardine-like tables and revel in the cafe’s relatively untouched and unchanged interiors, especially the giant mural (loosely about a day in the life of a bustling cafe in Mumbai) by legendary Indian illustrator Mario Miranda. 

Historee

The Yezdegardis, an Irani family, bought the home of a French sailor named called Monsieur Monde in 1925. Inspired by its Hindi reference ‘Monde Sahib ka Gar’ (Mr. Monde’s house) the Yezdegardis soon converted it to a café called ‘Monde-Gar’. It started off as a typical teahouse that also sold tobacco, foreign liquor, wine, breads and specialties from Iran like saffron, almonds, and pistachios. In time the Yezdegardis have developed an assorted menu influenced by Irani flavors. And today, you can choose from a variety of food, everything from kebabs to burgers, bruschetta, chow-mein, grills, and sizzlers. But through the ages, the house favorite has always been the Pepper Steak or Steak Boti. My personal favorite... the caramel custard, yummm!

Enjoy some of the snap shots i took this last visit to India. Am sure you'l notice the humor in each of the illustrations! Visit my flickr page at http://www.flickr.com/photos/amishadesai/5182115683/ for more pics of Mondys. 

The Bar 

"Apple of my eye, Ms. Big Boobs!"

The Taj Mahal

Mondys is among the last of its breed -- the perfect hybrid of Mumbai’s fast-dying Irani restaurants (chequered table-cloths? Check. Netted chairs? Check) and beer bars. Because it’s been there forever. But most of all, because it’s the sort of place you can buy a beer at noon in without feeling guilty. And god knows every city needs more of those. 

Artisan Group Feature : Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra

Thanksgiving - a time to express thankfulness, gratitude and appreciation.

As a thank you, we introduce our artisan groups these 10 days before thanksgiving. Let's know a little more about these wonderfully skilled men and women who create such beautiful products with so much of effort... just for us.

Introducing Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra!

products available at TGE

Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra (SKKK) works with Lambani artisans in the Bellary district of Karnataka. Lambanis also known as Banjaras, are a nomadic gypsy tribe, well-known for their exquisite traditional hand-embroidery using various stitches & mirror crafts. Currently, Sandur works with 300 women engaged in embroidery, khadi spinning and weaving. In addition to being paid for the production of each craft product, women artisans that work with Sandur also receives an annual bonus & other benefits such as health and life

insurance.

Coin Pouches

V-Shaped Bag

Bohemian Bag

Sandur has been previously awarded the prestigious ‘UNESCO Seal of Excellence for Handicrafts in South Asia’. Sandur make unique one off wall hangings, as well as a product range that includes cushions, bolsters, bags & belts.

If you like what you see here... check out more of their products on our website... Shoot us an email-- we have some lovely products coming in from sandur this season. ENjoy today!