Festival Cart all decked up, Pen and watercolor by Meera Rao
I have sketches from my trip in January and February to India and London that I somehow forgot to post. But then, unfortunately I also have ignored this blog in the past month and have to make up for it !! I am hoping to relive the travels that we were able to enjoy just before Covid quarantine as I post these sketches !
When in India we visited Sri Rangam and Tiruchirapalli in the state of Tamil Nadu for a family event and I spent a couple of hours sketching at the temple premises. The temple which is many centuries old occupies an area of 155 acres (63 ha) with 81 shrines, 21 towers, 39 pavilions, and many water tanks integrated into the complex making it the world's largest functioning Hindu temple. We were lucky to get a great tour even in the limited time we had, courtesy of my cousin Vrinda and her husband Ramanan who have published a wonderful book of photography and temple history "Sri Rangam: Bhooloka Vaikuntam".
This is the Festival cart all decked up ready for the major festival next day. The huge wooden structure is elaborately carved and decorated with colorful, embroidered cloth curtains and flags. I sketched it as we waited for the start of another festival ceremony the evening before. It is one of the few times I have sketched under the watchful eyes of a small crowd of devotees who were also lined up and waiting. As I balanced the sketchbook in one hand and drew standing up in the dim light of the setting sun, I could hear comments and some approval as the sketch evolved :) I had just enough time to complete the pencil drawing and did the watercolor wash at home. I included the father and daughter in the drawing for scale to highlight the massive structure !
