Land of Uttrakhand

Land of Uttarakhand

The land of Uttarakhand has a rich tradition of various arts and crafts like painting, wood carving, jewelry making, candle making, decorative temples and of course performing arts like music and dance. Their inspiration was obviously the lush green surroundings, the turquoise sky and the snow filled mountains which could make anyone poetic. The tranquil environs form a base for a treasure-house of artistically inclined people. The most prominent craft of Uttaranchal is wood carving. Every Garhwali home, let alone the palaces, has an intricately carved wooden entrance door. Talking of palaces, the most notable wood-carved architectural wonders are the Chandpur Fort, Temple of Srinagar (Garhwal), Pandukeshwar (near Badrinath), Devi Madin (near Joshimath), and Devalgarh Temple. The next in line are the fine-arts including the Miniature Paintings and Aipan & Peeth. The miniature paintings have Mughal influence but Uttaranchal has its own school/style of painting called the Garhwal School of Painting (offshoot of the Pahari School). Aipan and Peeth however are folk forms art made generally in homes and practiced usually by women. Both use a lot of geometric patterns, ‘Geru’ and rice paste. One can buy traditional Uttarakhand ornaments made from gold, silver, copper, beads, semi-precious stones and lacquer from various jewelry shops across the state.