Prep students create Indian Folk Art

During Cultural Celebration Week, students in the Prep Department participated in workshops exploring Madhubani Art, an ancient and traditional art form originating from the Mithila region of India. 

Our visiting artist, Harsha Basu, a specialist in Madhubani Art, worked with the students over two days, demonstrating the key techniques and sharing her understanding of this beautiful art form, which is a central part of Madhubani culture and has been passed down through generations: 'preserved, practised and promoted by women'. Seeing Harsha at work, it was clear that this is a holistic art form combining elements of nature, faith and mindfulness, and is not only wonderful to make, but also supports general wellbeing.

Students learned that delicate lines, called 'katchni', are the 'heart and soul' of the work, combined with a vibrant use of colour and intricate patterns. They explored working on handmade papers to create their designs inspired by traditional motifs including lotus flowers, fish and peacocks. They were intrigued as Harsha described the original working methods including using a dip pen, rather than our modern fibre tip pens. She also described the methods for making paper and paint using unusual natural ingredients including beetroot, tea, turmeric and even elephant dung - the students were relieved to hear that the ingredients for our paper was just recycled paper pulp with additional cotton fibre!

The students really enjoyed working with Harsha, gaining an insight into her cultural background, and creating their own Madhubani artwork, some of which was then used to create a Tree of Life composition featuring peacocks and leaves made by Year 6, fish made by Year 5, and flowers made by Years 3 and 4. This was exhibited during the Cultural Marketplace event, but we will also be displaying more of the students' Madhubani work within the Prep Department.

You can see pictures from the workshops in the Flickr album below.

Flickr album: Indian Folk Art Workshops 2025 | Height: auto | Theme: Default | Skin: Default Skin