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kalamkari
EntityQ17146207· pop 21· linked from 467 articles

Kalamkari, also commonly spelled as qalamkari, is an ancient textile printing art, that originated in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kalamkari gained popularity in the South India during the reign of Vijayanagara Empire. Kalam implies 'pen' and Kari means 'art', a name given by the Mughals when they discovered the art during their reign over the Deccan region. Only natural dyes are used in Kalamkari, which involves twenty-three steps.

Key facts

Geographical indication.name
Kalamkari
Geographical indication.image
Kalamkari painting of Lord Vishnu on serpent Ananta.jpg
Geographical indication.alternative names
Vraata Pani
Geographical indication.description
Kalamkari is an ancient traditional textile art
Geographical indication.area
Srikalahasti, Andhra Pradesh Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh
Geographical indication.country
India
Geographical indication.registered
Srikalahasti Kalamkari: April 2005 Machilipatnam Kalamkari: April 2008
Geographical indication.material
Cotton fabric, bamboo pen, wooden blocks, natural dyes
Geographical indication.image caption
Kalamkari painting of Lord Vishnu lying on the serpent Ananta, displayed at the British Museum.

via Wikipedia infobox

~11 min read

Encyclopedic overview

11 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • History
  • Styles
  • Middle forms
  • Technique
  • Colour fixing
  • Themes
  • Modern day
  • See also
  • References
  • Further reading

Kalamkari, also commonly spelled as qalamkari, is an ancient textile printing art, that originated in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kalamkari gained popularity in the South India during the reign of Vijayanagara Empire. Kalam implies 'pen' and Kari means 'art', a name given by the Mughals when they discovered the art during their reign over the Deccan region. Only natural dyes are used in Kalamkari, which involves twenty-three steps.

There are two main styles of Kalamkari in India. The hand painted style that is largely practised in the town of Srikalahasti and block printed that is practised in the town of Machilipatnam, both located in Andhra Pradesh. Both styles are registered as Geographical Indications from Andhra Pradesh under handicraft goods, with the Srikalahasti style registered in 2005 and the Machilipatnam style in 2008, under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “kalamkari” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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