Rangoli artist Vijaya Mohan weaves recycling into art
Internationally-recognised Rangoli Community Artist Vijaya Mohan has drawn over 19,000 rangolis in Singapore as well as abroad in countries such as the USA, Taiwan and Japan.
Rangoli is best described as Indian courtyard or doorstep paintings, featuring geometrical shapes and designs usually adapted from nature, showcasing plants, fish and animals in their themes.
Created using rice powder, floor, sand and chalk, the rangoli is usually drawn during festive occasions such as Deepavali and New Year.
Ms Vijaya started drawing rangolis at age five, learning the art from her mother.
She told TNP that all her family members can draw rangolis, with one of her two grandsons holding two records in rangoli drawing.
Ms Vijaya and her husband N. Mohan in 2015 founded Singa Rangoli, a company that creates rangolis for clients and teaches the art in workshops.
As society becomes more aware of the environment, Ms Vijaya has incorporated recycling into her art, using items such as used toothpicks, bottle caps, pistachio shells and even lipsticks.
“My fingers are my tools, and creation comes from the heart and soul. Use whatever is on hand to create art,” she told TNP.
And her art helped lift the mood during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ms Vijaya, who was commissioned for a Deepavali event at Tekka Centre, created the Dancing Rangoli in which members of the public were invited to dance on a linked platform that would fill up an electronic screen with colours to complete a rangoli.
In conjunction with Deepavali this year, which falls on Oct 31, Ms Vijaya showed TNP how she created a rangoli free-hand.
@thenewpaperdigital I can't even do that with a pencil on paper and she's using her hands #rangoli #rangoliarts #deepavali #diwali #singapore ♬ Diwali Celebration - FASSounds
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