Difficult to believe that rangoli designs to celebrate Diwali, are created out of coloured sand ! Apart from the central circle, designs are mostly free-hand, embodying the energy of the designer, as the sand slips through the fingers.
This one decorating the entrance to a large shopping mall, looked more like an intricate pile carpet, with its patterns of lines and swirls - it reminded me of the mosaic pavements in medieval churches in Italy.
However, rangoli designs are not meant to last, and at the end of the Diwali season, they will be swept away ! The mosaic pavement below, made out of small stone tesserae, in front of the altar at the church of S. Miniato in Florence, has been around for 600 years !
Mosaic Pavement - San Miniato, Florence, 13th century
Mosaic Pavement - San Miniato, Florence, 13th century
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