History of Papier Mache in IndiaIn the year 1398, when India wasinvaded by Tamur Lane, SultanSikander sent his son to pay tribute tothe invader. Tamur lane betrayed theagreement of his alliance with theSultan and made his son a hostage inSamarkhand for seven years. Manycraftsmen from Central Asia and Persiahad accompanied Tamur Lane to Indiaand were placed in Samarkhand aswell. There this young dynamic Princesaw the strange craft made of paperpulp. He learnt the art and later when hebecame the king after his father's death,spread this art among the craftsmen ofhis region.The base of this craft is paper pulpcoarsely mashed and mixed withcopper sulphate and rice-flourpaste. Then moulded by coveringthe mould with a thin paper andthen with layers of this mixture.The designers then sketch thedesigns intricately and finally it islaquered and polished in brightcolors. A touch of golden color isalways found on all papier-macheproducts owing its root to thePersian design.
ProposalThe proposal was approached as a piece ofartifact. As most artwork go,A new visualSocio-cultural interpretationAbstraction of a figureFor CritiquePaper PulpOrdinary newspaper was soaked and made topulp by mashing them in a mixing pond withfeet until they become smooth and lump free.Multani mittiThen soaked and muddy multani mitti” isadded and beaten. The beating is done so asto ensure that there is no lump formation.“Methi” seed powder“Methi” seed powder is the added to preservethe object for a long period of timeAdvantagesExtremely mouldableAssisted drying in 5-6 hoursGood for additive designConstraintsThe constraints as faced in the project are asfollowsOpaqueShrinkage while settingDeformation due to non-uniformityDry lumps in materialUneven texture due to non-uniformityDeformation due to non-uniformityCrack formationDifficult in subtractive form development