Week 4

This weeks design is centred on the elephants that stand guard at the entrance to the Pagoda.

I have been doing some research into Nepal recently.  I knew it was located in the Himalayan Mountains to the north of India.  That there had been the murder of the Royal Family, that this is where the Sherpas come from, that Mount Everest is located there, that some good textiles come from this region.  But that is about the depth of my knowledge.  The topography of the country ranges from valleys and plains that are only 100 -330m above sea level to the High Himalayas where the highest mountains in the world are found.

The climate ranges from tropical through subtropical, cool temperate, temperate, alpine to arctic.  This means that there is a huge range of vegetation's and animals.  Because of it's location there has been waves of immigrants and invasions into the region mixing with the indigenous population.  In the 1991 census the population was 19.6 million. This included fifty different groups with their sub-divisions and classes, each having its own cultural background and language.

The two major religions are Hinduism and Buddhism which have influenced each other and in some places are found to represent an amalgam of these and other religious beliefs.  You can see this in the Pagoda.  I was really confused at one point as I was sure I was looking at the same art I had seen in India but this was a Buddhist Temple.  Well not in the strictest sense.

Elephants are seen all over India. Even today in the chaotic traffic of Delhi you will often see an elephant in amongst the traffic.

In States such as Rajastan the elephants live in stables attached to the houses of their owners.  They are painted and decorated lovingly.  I like the folk art type representations of the elephant that you see in textiles and it is this tradition that I will draw upon for my design.

(These Images were taken on a trip to India in 2006)
When you stand next to an elephant you have to admit they are impressive!

 
 

Comments

[Pam Holland]

You go girl.....