Gowri Savoor Rangoli

Essex Middle School, Essex VT Jan 2013

rangolibygowrisavoor — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 14:41:09 +0000

In January 2013, I worked with the students of Essex Middle School during a one-week residency. We learnt all about Rangoli – dyed our own rice, created designs on tiles and even indulged in some mindful doodling. The tiles will eventually be mounted onto a board and will be on permanent display in the school. Here are some images from the week.

Click to view slideshow.

Kent Museum Update – of mice and rice

rangolibygowrisavoor — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 15:09:06 +0000

Well the Rangoli design at the Kent Museum was more popular than we first thought – not only with the viewing public, but with the local mice population. After the first 24 hours, a few grains of rice had gone missing. By day 7 over half the Rangoli had disappeared. (see image below). And within 14 days, all 10-15 lbs of rice had been taken away for safe-keeping. All that remained was a small trail of bright pink grains leading into a hole in the fireplace. I was interested to see that the orange rice was the most popular, the natural white grains being the least. To think that nature had indeed removed the Rangoli in its own sweet way was quite thrilling.

Kent Museum, Calais, VT. Friday September 28th 2012

rangolibygowrisavoor — Sat, 29 Sep 2012 17:32:02 +0000

In the beautiful and historically preserved Kent Musuem, in the heart of the breathtaking county of Calais, Vermont, I was invited to create an interactive drawing installation on the day preceding the opening of the exhibition Full Circle. It was a wonderful experience to be working with over 20 participants. Over the course of 6 hours, we completed a 6ft x 4ft rectangular design which will remain on view to the public for the duration of the show. Full Circle runs from September 29th to October 7th 2012. Many thanks to Nel Emlen, Allyson Evans and David Schutz for putting together an amazing exhibition.

Lesley Ellis School, Arlington, MA

rangolibygowrisavoor — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 13:34:36 +0000

In February I visited the Lesley Ellis School, an independent school, preschool through Grade 6, located in Arlington, MA. We covered a lot of ground, in short classes of 30 – 45 minutes. The students were able to learn about Rangoli through a visual presentation and witness its uses, history, processes and materials. They then had the opportunity to create their own Rangoli design using a blank grid and create a foundation for a further, more in-depth study at some time in the future. It was a great day and a lot of fun. Many thanks to Laura Douglass for your help and support.

If you are interested in booking a Rangoli workshop for your school, either day-long or residency, or would just like some further information, please contact me, Gowri Savoor, on info@gowrisavoor.com

Morehead State University, Kentucky. October 2011

rangolibygowrisavoor — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 21:35:35 +0000

In October 2011, I was invited to Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky, to perform and coordinate a participatory Rangoli drawing.
The finished design was 5ft x 5ft in size, took over 15lbs of rice in 10 colors and utilized the help of 18 participants over 6 hours.
Many thanks to Jennifer Reis, Gallery Director of MSU and the following students for their help, focus and enthusiasm:
Annie Peterson, Morgan Gaunce, Sarah Porter, Jaleesa Wonell, Maria Blevins, Nancy Sartor, Alana Brewer, Chrissy Smith, Tara Castellano, Callie Morgan, Torri Bakonyi, Collin Hite, Carly Saunders, Oana Elena Nae, Angie Comstock and Sarah Burkhardt.

Click to view slideshow.

Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA

rangolibygowrisavoor — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:48:44 +0000

On the weekend of 2nd and 3rd April 2011, I was invited to the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA to perform a Rangoli, as part of Sensational India!, a weekend of creative activities celebrating the arts and culture of India.
Two separate designs were provided for children interested in participating in rangoli making.

The Rangoli design was a celebration of springtime. It included around 8-10 colours, took 10hrs to complete and was 6 x 6ft in size.
On this occasion the design was drawn out onto fabric first, making its demolition a little easier.

Click to view slideshow.

Vermont Yoga Festival

rangolibygowrisavoor — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 01:52:21 +0000

The 2nd Annual Vermont Yoga Festival, organised by Jennifer Cherkasov and Lisa Mase took place over the weekend of October 15-17, 2010, at the Vermont College of Fine Arts, Montpelier, VT. More information can be found at http://www.vermontyogafestival.com/
I performed the following Rangoli demonstration at the festival site. Size: 3ft x 3ft. Time taken 4hrs.

Rangoli for Vermont Yoga Festival

Upcoming Rangoli Events:

rangolibygowrisavoor — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 19:15:38 +0000

More events coming soon, please check back!

Suffolk University, Boston 2010

rangolibygowrisavoor — Mon, 17 May 2010 15:56:48 +0000

In April 2010, I was invited to Suffolk University by Afshan Bokhari, Assistant Professor of Art History at the New England School of Art and Design, to deliver a two-day Rangoli workshop/demonstration and present a lecture about my practice.

The Rangoli was constructed to celebrate the opening of the new, state-of-the-art NESAD building at 20 Somerset Street.

Over the two day period, up to ten students helped to complete the design, which was 7ft x 7ft in size and comprised of 13 different colors of dyed rice and various grains. Time taken: approx. 12hrs.

The event was sponsored by The Rosenberg Institute for East Asian Studies, the CAS Dean’s Office, and NESAD.

Click to view slideshow.

Thatcher Brook Primary School, 2009

rangolibygowrisavoor — Mon, 17 May 2010 15:22:39 +0000

In December 2009, I was invited to work with the pupils of Thatcher Brook Primary School during a one-week cultural residency. It was a fun and busy week – each of the 350 pupils had the opportunity to learn about Rangoli design and construction and have some hands-on experience.

Half the school worked on a traditional Rangoli, working with rice and lentils. The rice was affixed to an 8ft x 4ft panel board and varnished, so the school could keep it on permanent display.

The remainder of the school worked towards a stained glass Rangoli. This is also on permanent display within the school.

Art teacher MK Monley with artist Gowri Savoor

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