Botanica

Enrolling in Rutgers Cooperative Extension's Master Gardener program has made plants of all types an ever expanding source of inspiration for my art. As part of the program I will be completing some of the required sixty  hours of volunteer work in the herb garden. The herbs above and below were created using papercut techniques.

Linked to Try it on Tuesday's Botanical Challenge and Paint Party Friday.

Paper Cut Art: Saffron

Papercut by Indira

Do-Something-Everyday, June 23, 2016

 Saffron, mainly used in the cuisines of India and the Middle East, is the most expensive spice in the world. It is derived from the flower of Crocus sativus.  Each crocus bears about four flowers, each with three red stigmas known as threads.

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

The threads are harvested by hand and dried to be used both as a flavoring and a colorant in food. Each flower produces about twelve threads and about 125 flowers are needed to produce one gram of saffron threads. The labor costs involved in the cultivation and the limited amount produced by the plants are the main reasons for the high cost of saffron. Thankfully, only a small amount is needed to add distinctive flavor and yellow color to food. To make the most of  the small amount of dried saffron, soak it in a few teaspoons of warm milk for a few minutes before adding it just as the dish approaches doneness. When buying saffron, which are sold at all Indian grocery stores, buy a small amount at a time, and store it in the freezer.

I love the taste and the color of saffron and it finds its way in many of the milk based desserts that I make. Below is Eggless Indian Tapioca Pudding topped with threads of saffron.  The complete recipe post is found here.

Thanks for visiting. Linked to Paint Party Friday.

Zen Art: Paper Cut Maps

Do-Something-Everyday, June 10, 2016

I am reposting this post from a while ago.

I spent this weekend working on my paper cutting skills. One does not normally associate cutting and knife with meditation. Yet, as one spends hours and hours cutting away thin slice after thin slice of paper, one enters the same state of mindfulness and stillness that a deep meditation produces. The effect of creating the lacy concoction above was just about the same as that of thirty minutes of meditation--freeing and relaxing.

For this project, I got a nice vintage map of Rome from the Graphics Fairy. The map was in color and came with a legend. I wanted to keep both, so I did the cut on the right side. If you look carefully, you will see the Coliseum on the bottom right and St. Peter's Basilica on the top left. I used an Exacto knife with a small blade to make the tiny cuts. To add a personal touch, I added the little message at the top.

Thanks for visiting. Linked to Art-Journal-Journey

Cut Paper Art: Cilantro

Do-Something-Everyday, June 9, 2016

 I picked up a bunch of fresh green coriander (also known as cilantro) while shopping for groceries. Coriander is heavily used in Indian cooking in pestos, sauces, dips and, as a garnish. Their fresh smell inspired me to make this paper cut.

The evergreen magnolias (magnolia grandiflora) have started blooming. This one was really huge. Each petal was about 4" wide. The petals are creamy white but in some light they look pale white. They don't make good cut flowers. Better to enjoy them them on the tree. The petals are so gorgeous that I am thinking of making a paper version of them. I think they will come out well with crepe paper. Will see.

Thanks for visiting. Linked to Paint Party Friday. Thanks to Eve and Kristin for hosting.

Gone Fishin'

Do-Something-Everyday, May 24, 2016

Cut- Paper-Art

I did this cut paper art on a black paper from an original sketch I did a few weeks ago. I layered it first on a printed paper to color the lily pads green. Then I layered it on a blue paper for both water and the sky. Then I cut out the text and layered it on white paper.  Below are some detailed shots.

I planted these irises almost twenty years ago. They still come up every year!

Thanks for visiting.

Linked to image-in-ing
Linked to moomania water challenge.

Cut Paper Art: Red Whiskered Bulbul

Do-Something-Everyday, May 19, 2016

Today I did a papercut out of a photo I took of a bird on a palm tree while travelling in Wayanad, Kerala. The bird is red whiskered bulbul, a bird common to Kerala. It  is not a particularly spectacular looking bird, but it cast a sweet silhouette against the morning mist shrouding the tree (see below).

What I made for Mother's Day

Instead of going out for lunch, I made kind of a gourmet lunch. First one is tomato-cumber yogurt salad; second is spicy (Indian) kidney beans; third is fried Indian bread. It was a very satisfying lunch.

Thanks for visiting.

Cut Paper Art: Shadow Play

Do-Something-Everyday, May 16, 2016

This is a henna hand design that I use often in my art.  I had originally drawn and painted it on a book page. Last night, I made a cut paper design out of one of them. Then I mounted it on a glass to get the shadow effect. This was bit of an experiment;  some parts of it turned out better than others.  I would like to improve the lighting part of it.

Thanks for visiting.

Do-Something-Everyday: Prince at Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

https://instagram.com/p/BD29BXWh-85/

Do-Something-Everyday, April 27, 2016

Last Thursday Prince died. His death, like Michael Jackson's, saddened me deeply because I lived on their music during the first few years of my life in the US. He, along with Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, Madonna were the earliest torch bearers of the fledgling MTV and, his risque videos both shocked and captivated me. The apartment we had rented had free cable television and, 'Raspberry Beret, '1999' and Little Red Corvette' on endless loop kept me company

Do-Something-Everyday: Georgia on My Mind

Do-Something-Everyday: April 20, 2016

I did this papercut of a photo I took of the exterior of  Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe last November (see below). O'Keefe, a former New Yorker, lived the last five decades of her life in Abiquiu, New Mexico, capturing its magical landscape in oil paintings. The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe houses the largest permanent collection of her work in the world. When I was visiting Santa Fe in November 2015, the museum was running an exhibition titled "From New York to New Mexico: Masterworks of American Modernism".

Map-Cut Art

I love maps and even more I love crafting with them. One of my favorite map cutting, especially old city grid maps. I find the art of map-cutting very meditative. Even though it involves the use of knife, the task of cutting each little grid on the map into a lacy whole is both calming and reflective. What I have discovered is that as one cuts along the various lines, sometimes new shapes and images reveal themselves. The maps of Sofia, Bulgaria and Rome, Italy are transformed into birds in flight here.

I start with a city map that is in a square grid format. (I find these maps on Wikipedia.) I cut out each of the square little by little.Then I colorize the open grids. Now the fun begins: I turn it around this way and that to see if I could see any interesting shape within the cutout. I snip away little pieces here and there till I come with an image. I glue a backing paper to the cutout and sometimes as a final touch I coat it with wax (last photo).

Thanks for visiting.