Thursday, September 27, 2012

Energy Sources

India Art Journal Aug 27 by Meera Rao
 
India Art Journal July 2, by Meera Rao
 
My most favorite part of staying in India for the past three months has been the variety of tropical fruits I get to savor :)  Sita Phala- Sugar Apple, Pomegranates, Mangoes, Jackfruits, mini bananas, guava, sugar cane, papaya, musambi, etc. etc -- the list is endless with each fruit unique in its taste, texture, aroma, size and color :)  Check out this link if you would llike to look at some photographs of exotic tropical fruits :) 
 
India Art Journal Aug 28, by Meera Rao
 
This interesting looking contraption is UPS or Universal Power Supply - that is an essential backup for power failures which unfortunately happens many times a day. It is a must for computers if  you can't afford to loose data and usage. It supplies temporary power for an essential light bulb or two or more may be even a TV! The UPS charges when the power supply is on for use when the electricity supply fails. Most shops, malls, apartment complexes in addition to UPS also have back up generators. More and more individual houses also depend on one.  Earlier in the year,  there was a major power grid breakdown in all of northern India that dominated the news media's attention. I guess its the price to pay for growth and demand when both outpaces planning and supply. I had to sketch the UPS at our place and immortalize it for all the work it does quietly ( well, it beeps once to let us know when it comes on or goes off!)
 
The following two sketches are once again from the very beginning of my journal getting their primetime spot all by themselves.  You may click on this and this to read about them. 
 
India Art Journal July 3 by Meera Rao
India Art Journal July 4 by Meera Rao

6 comments:

thiliMy said...

The Universal Power Supply looks very abstract! Almost Mondrian-y!

Meera Rao said...

Thank you Thili ;) yes, and they also remind me of little Halloween ghosts or pac-man or some such video game as well;)

padmaja said...

Yummy fruits! Have you tried Naturals ice creme yet? Dont miss while you are there!
And who would think of sketching the UPS! loos so lovely as a sketch!
It is beautiful tusli katte, you can mend it with M seal and then paint over it. I do it all the time with my broken Terracotta horses:-)

Meera Rao said...

Thank you Padmaja ;) I will try the naturals ice cream - had not heard about it yet! And thanks for the tip about the tulsi Katte- I will pass on the information to the right party ;) I knew as soon as the guy pulled out the UPS I had to sketch it !!!

Hema P. said...

Oh, Meera, your drawings made me miss the gooey goodness of Sitaphal so acutely! That is one fruit I miss terribly living away from India.

It's so true what you said about the leaf bowls being eco-friendly. Most of the old Indian ways were environment friendly: the reuse of coconut fiber and ashes to clean dishes, the use of dried rushes to make brooms etc. On my last visit back home, I realized gone are the wise, old ways to be replaced by modern (environment-damaging) ideas :(.

Meera Rao said...

Hema, Thank you! As I said in the post, I love being able to feast on on those fruits that I can't find in US :)
and yes, if only there was a way of more orderly intergration of new and the old without loosing the cultural identity or environmental health.

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