Rhythms & Beats a Part of Our Homes

Diposting oleh Miras Jogja on Senin, 25 Juni 2012

Music & decor...is strange combination right? No no..it ain't strange at all! Somebody has said "Music enhances homes and always resembles something!" So, in my post, there is music and some good homes and studios with some wonderful musicians!

The Beat of the Drum!



Varun Venkit from Taal Inc is a friend who believes in connecting to the inner rhythms of your body. Through his music and drums he focuses on areas of health and well being of people. He conducts regular drum circles for various populations and ages and helps people in participating in a community activity, a stress buster, and behavioural intervention technique.



Since Bipin is a part of Taal Inc. I got a chance to visit Varun's home. I loved it the moment I entered his little room with a very interesting sound proof studio. He told me that a lot of his friends coloured and helped him with the graffiti on its walls.





Since the whole place was full of different drums like the Drum Set, Djembe, Doumbek and so on, I wanted to capture as much as possible. What interested me was also how he had decorated his room with other little things that showed his passion and inclination for music!

Rhythms at Home!





A lot of beats and rhythms begin in my own home! There is rhythm on the table, on the drum set, on the Djembe or anything that helps the beat! My study has various drums from Tabla, Djembe, Doumbek, the Drum Set, Dholak and some more accessories to go with the tempo! Well you may ask me why the collection? The collection is a part of Bipins passion as well. All along his day and life, he thinks of rhythms.



All these drums occupy a lot of space. Also living in an apartment doesn't allow too much liberty to have a sound proof room. Hence we decided to place them in such a way so that our neighbours don't fear earthquakes very often. So, we broke a wall, framed a glass on it, raised a platform in order to absorb the sound. And voila, the room is a shared asset with a book shelf, my study, our shot glass collection, a funky bar and a collection of beautiful carved drums!




DJ Amah & his Didgeridoos




As much as fun and playful Amar is, he is one sombre guy when it comes to music. We call DJ Amah since it sounds so cool! He is an ardent lover of almost every musical instrument right from guitars to drums and to didgeridoos. He is the lead behind his group called The Ajala Dhwani Project. This group attempts to interpret the Earth,and its sounds and the existence of mankind on this planet.



As much as how musical instruments look good, they can be very messy and unorganized due to the wires and belts and all the other accessories they come with. To flaunt them better and to keep them intact, Aditi, his wife, plays a very important role. She manages this music room making it interesting by looking into the aesthetics of her home.



A very unique thing about their decor is the simplicity in which it is displayed despite the mixture of so many instrument which are a part of Hindustani, Carnatic music, Indian and World Folk. Both Amar and Aditi have done a good job!

Inheritance of a Violin



Deepa, my sister almost inherited a violin from her parents on her birthday. As much as she wanted to learn the violin, she put her family at priority and overlooked her passion for quite sometime. Then came a day that she put her hands to work on this art with great traditions behind it. A tradition followed by almost every member in her family. A family of musicians!



Obviously, for a creative person like her, she couldn't help but use this harmonious instrument to be a part of her beautiful home. She cares and keeps it in such a fashion that the more she sees it, the further she wants to play it! Violin is where she finds her happiness, preserving it as a part of her decor is her practice.

Lost in time - The Tambora



Roopa, my mother-in-law goes back into history. History of certain instruments lost in time. Her melodious voice and a unified evocative rhythm of the Tambora soothes the beautiful garden and home she lives in.



Through her artistic sense, she constantly works on projects around the house and surprises all of us every time we go home. There is a new painting or a patch work or a comfortable seating to practice her music! When I visited her last, she played her melodious Tambora in her garden by the Tulsi Vrindavan ( a pot or a holder of a type of auspicious basil considered holy). I loved the melody and the arrangement she made to practice her song.



The art of arranging sounds amidst the natural environment of her home accompanied by music is something I tried capturing!

These are some people I thought are very interesting! They have a great aesthetic sense of decorating their homes, stirring the rhythms and beat of music in different forms! I loved them, their homes and their passion for music that comes from within!
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CONTEST TIME - Its all in the Painting!

Diposting oleh Miras Jogja on Rabu, 23 Mei 2012


CONTEST TIME!!! :) :) Yay!!

During my visit to Turkey last year, I came across this house with beautiful tiles, in colours like blue, red, black and yellow against the light green door! Contrasting with these lush colours was a flower pot with bright yellow wild flowers planted in a simple bucket! How could I not take a picture?? :)
Now here goes my contest! Can anybody paint this picture and post it on my Lively-wood by Sunday May 27th? Anything would do, pencil, crayon, poster or acrylic colours! Just anything! That one artist will win a beautiful surprise from the LAND OF TURKIYE!COME ON....prove the ARTIST in you! :)
Can't wait!
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Recycle....is it a part of everybodies life?

Diposting oleh Miras Jogja on Selasa, 15 Mei 2012

When people like us re-use and recycle, the world will change, ain't it? Now you may say that how many times am I going to write about it on my blog...I say..over and over again! This time I shall talk less about how I have recycled and talk more about how a lot of people around me have done the same..in their own little way.
Kanchan, one of the most creative lady I have ever met in my life runs an apparel business with ethnicity and a deep reflection of our culture in her patterns. It is called Design Kreeda. She not only designs clothing but also works around other imaginative ideas. Lets see her plan on a broken chair she salvaged for a long time. She says " I love some of my furniture dearly but when it is no more in a usable condition, I cannot throw it. I couldn't throw my favourite chair away! So I decided to use it differently... I was in my study room, searching for some small note and wanted to buy a pin up board to save them all. I decided to buy a boring pin board. I thought and turned around only to see my poor little broken chair shoved under the cupboard. And volila! This broken chair was converted into a pin board!"
I don't know Vasudha but I have seen her work. She seems to be a very imaginative gal with her blog full of beautiful and most importantly doable things! I asked her if she wanted to be a part of my recycle post and she agreed. Thank you so much for sharing your work. Anyway I picked this really nice post on 'The art of Decoupage'. She says that she has a chestnut trunk which she thinks is easily 75 years old and sort of damaged. Since she had mastered the art of decoupage, she decided to use it on this trunk as well. Laced with pictures from a calendar, the trunk looked gorgeous and original. This whole makeover took her about 3 days to complete. Using the used was her contribution to the old and new!
Rutika is my very young friend whom I worked out with. She, I thought was one of the most sensible and nice people from a whole bunch of them. She is also one person who loves experimenting different things. She says that she picks up a lot of fancy liquor bottles. She tries using them as juice bottle or vases. These bottle featured in the post had a lovely shape which inspired her to make use of it for summer juices. Hence, she put up some simple polka dots with cool colours and got a cork of stainless steel and converted it into a bottle for serving juice/water.
Another inspired and creative buddy of mine Aditi is always up to something. Though a physiotherapist by profession, she enjoys creating new things all the time. Well I think her innovative juices keep her going and she does come up with unusual things like pen stands from corn tins, tissue paper dispenser out of liquor boxes, photo frames out of shirt cardboard etc. She says, "RECYCLE has a synonym called UPCYCLE' which has always been an intriguing and interesting pass time for me. Now though I refer to it as a pass time it is much more than that. When I recycle stuff, it is usually made of the things which are lying around at home- unnoticed, unseen or under utilized." The most fascinating thing she made were beads. Can anybody guess what they are made with? They are'PAPER BEADS'!" It is the best way to utilize all the envelops, wrapping papers, pizza menu pamphlets, advertisement pamphlets, old magazines or news papers. She makes fancy necklaces, earrings, bracelets, etc from them!
My architect friend Aloka and her husband bought a new apartment last year.There was a lot of old furniture in it that the earlier family did not take along. She says, as architects they were not enthusiastic about it because it did not meet with our design sensibilities. Moreover, as per our new furniture layout, many fixed pieces were positioned in the wrong place as seen in the first picture. Since they believe in re-using, they decided to re-position and work around things which already existed. And voilà the kiddie room appears larger, the white colour helps it look light and breezy. There are dashes of colour that liven up the space without making it feeling dingy.
From the above examples, lets assume that recycling is a part of many lives. It isn't all about only being creative, it is a contribution you make to this world. In this post, I want to highlight and thank all people who have chipped in their ideas and have spread awareness.
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Story of Reflections Reflected!

Diposting oleh Miras Jogja on Senin, 09 April 2012

It seems like a weird title, ain't it? The whole post is about one of the most popular, innovative, utilitarian and aesthetic piece of furniture which just takes about a little space on your walls. I am talking about mirrors, the one thing I enjoy making. I always feel that when you look into a creative mirror and like what you see, makes you happy.

Most of the mirrors I have made so far, have always had some sort of a reason and inspiration. I love to pick ideas off the streets or from my travels and make it a part of my creation. From my collection, I have picked up some lovelies and their stories.

Bluesome Vespa


Remember the days when the almost one motor bike was the Vespa? When I made this mirror, I spotted a beautiful blue antique scooter on the streets of Mumbai. Thats when I thought, its time to revive the past...it is time to relive the moments even I spent on this moped as a child!

Colour Recycled


I am big into recycling. I try to re-use as much as I can. Every time my carpenter shaves off wood to make the surface smooth, these beautiful curls of fine papyrus wood get wasted. Hence, I decided to process and colour them so that they last, and stuck them on my mirror. Turned out to be a creative mixture of natural and recycled material.

Tashi Delek


In 2009, we visited Sikkim for 15 days. We ventured in to the remotest areas bordering Tibet. The experience was divine. I noticed A lot of hotels, restaurants, shops were called "Tashi Delek". Infact the hotel we stayed was called "Tashi Delek" meaning 'may good luck come to you' in Bhutia. As soon as I got got home, "Tashi Delek" had to be on my mirror!

Jaala


Round, rich and deep blue, one of my favourite mirror is Jaala, meaning water. Water being the most important element of life, civilization and prosperity had to be a part of my work. My visit to Hampi made me implement some elements of the Vijayanagara kingdom into my work which survived and prospered because of the infinite Pushkarnis or man-made water holes and a splendid water supply despite the barren land of Hampi. This mirror marks the infinite water reservoirs and the riches of the kingdom of Vijaynagara.

Zig Zag


I had always seen zebras on television. It wasn't the most fascinating animal I had ever seen. In 2010, I visited Kenya when I actually got to see herds of them. I loved them instantly and again, it had to reflect in my work!

Eva La Rosa


While I lived in the USA, I had a little Indian handicraft store in a Farmers Market in Dayton. Every Sunday morning, he would sell beautiful, fresh roses from his farm for just $6! The placard saying "roses for just $6" was written so artistically, that I copied it on to my mirror.

Horn OK Please


How can we ever ignore the lovely slow moving trucks of our country? They are bright, bold and gorgeous. I can say they are "shaan" (pride) of India! So, I dedicated an entire mirror to these giant beauties of India!

Sheesha Peetal


During my travel to Hampi, The most important metal used during those times was copper or peetal. This place was also full of temples where spoons, diyas or lanterns were made from copper. Hence, I thought, I should dedicate my tall, green mirror to the temples and the common man of Vijayanagara.

Peacock Plumage

I was shocked to see the overwhelming intricate doors on all the houses on the island of Zanzibar! I had to use it...the idea, the design! It came popping in into another deep green mirror I made, I call it Peacock Plumage!
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NDTV Profit features my home!

Diposting oleh Miras Jogja on Minggu, 01 April 2012

So..in the month of March 2012, I receive a call from Manasvi. She talks to me about being a part of NDTV Property Show. While I talk with her, I keep thinking, why would I be invited to a property show when I design homes? I also wondered why would I have a stall in an exhibit where they sell houses and offices? Anyway I thought I will dig deeper and ask her more questions. In my mind, I had decided that doing an exhibition at this time was not such a good idea! So, I call her up again to let her know that I would not be able to do the show. Before I could begin, she tells me about her show in details and why she wanted to feature my home! I almost stumbled with my words and asked her to repeat what she said. And yes!! She said she wanted to feature my home on NDTV Profit in the Property Show!! :)



So right after that, a date was fixed for them to come home. She told me it would take a few hours to shoot that particular room they had chosen to feature. It was the Leisure Lounge. The room which has so much thought behind it. A room that has a place for a study table, storage, book case, a podium for a large no. of drums, a funky bar and a beautiful cabinet for our shot glass collection.





On their arrival, we discussed what all we were going to talk about, the background of our collection and basically the entire idea behind that room. I spoke more about my work, the colours used and trinkets we picked up from our travels while Bipin spoke more on the lines of his passion for drumming and other little aspects of the room.





Finally after 6 hours of extensive camera and light setting, shooting the knick-knacks from our bookcase and of course the shot glass collection, Manasvi concluded the session. We couldn't wait for it to get featured. March 13th, 2012 was the day when it all came alive!



Here is the link of the video. I have cropped it so that you don't have to go through the entire show.

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The Lively-wood Studio

Diposting oleh Miras Jogja on Senin, 19 Maret 2012

It has been a four years since I started Lively-wood. Nurturing and flowing with it made these years go by and I thought it was time to gift this endeavor a little something. It was time to progress a little! So a shabby little workshop turned into the Lively-wood Studio. A place to display my work, colour, ideas and every little thing that helps me create something new!!



To start with the mirrors, I needed a place to display each and every one of them so that I keep the artwork intact and at one glance, my customers or visitors have a chance to see them all. It also meant, having all the floor space for other things.



A desk with knick-knacks that motivate me, was an important element. I had preserved these mementos from my college days which had abundant memories yet were packed in boxes. I had to get all of it out along with some recycled clocks and put it up right there. I had a artwork, lying around from a project, that I didn't want to throw and was wondering how best to put it to use. So this leftover work turns into a bright bold red grid with the mementos and all my paper gets a display on the soft board hung over my desk!








Like I mentioned in one of my earlier post, I am going crazy recycling! Yes, I went crazy re-using as much as possible even this time! I started with using two steel cut outs which were lying around from Bipin's Dad's factory in the scrap heap. I coloured them and displayed them at the entrance of my studio. For now, I think they look great there! The next I re-used was a window grid made with very good quality sagwan or teak wood. I decided to paint it deep blue and used it as my little chandelier! The list like that, goes on and on...





Lastly, I wanted to display whatever was left behind. A ceramic bell, paper lights, a bird cage and so many little knick-knacks!







Its so nice when some loved ones visit you. I loved taking them to my studio and also felt good to be appreciated.





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