Last Saturday I helped out at the Diwali Festival at the Art Institute. Diwali is a festival of lights where vibrant colors and lights are used in different customs to keep away evil. I worked in the rangoli room where traditionally, families create a colorful patterns out of flour and water around a ria (the traditional clay lamp used in the festival. We used ripped pieces of paper instead of flour. Less of a mess! The best part about the day was hearing Indian families talk about the traditions and stories they tell in their households.
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| Our collaborative rangoli. Each family would come in and add their own design. |
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| This little boy represented a mountain and a sky as part of a story about Krishna who sheltered an Indian community from a storm by lifting a mounting raising it over the people. |
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| This is the dia light symbol that traditionally goes in the middle of the rangoli. Families light the dias for Diwali. |
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| A beautiful rainbow. The little girl worked so hard! |
great pictures, meredith! looks like a fun and successful afternoon.
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