I have a great love of the unique devotional art from India: over many trips there, as well as from purchases from reputable online sites, I now enjoy a small collection of paintings & sculpture in my home. Since I had first seen them, though, lost-wax sculptures of gods & goddesses - with their graceful limbs holding symbolic articles, with a fresh vitality & lovely facial expressions - had particularly captured my heart. For many years I had searched, in India & online, for one image in particular: that of Sri Rama. Even in India this is not easy to find. One day I did an online search, not expecting much result. Yet at a site in India called Cottage9, I saw a beautiful brass lost-wax of Sri Rama with all the elements I wished for: a graceful yet strong demeanor, holding a separate bow in his hand; with a noble & kind expression. Alas, it had already been sold; lost-wax images are by definition one-of-a-kind. When I inquired, I was told that I could commission another murti of Sri Ram; while of course no lost-wax sculpture can be duplicated, I was assured it would be of the same high quality. This was taking a risk; there was no way to know what the finished sculpture would look like. The person with whom I was interacting, Mr. Gupta, sent me an article describing not only each step, with photos, of creating a lost-wax bronze sculpture (Mr. Gupta patiently answered all my questions about materials, concluding that bronze was generally considered the best metal in lost-wax sculpting), yet also describing the prayer and meditation that each artist undertakes before creating an image of the Divine. Mr. Gupta thoroughly answered several other questions; I even sent some photos of the Murtis which would also be on the altar. After these conversations I felt ready to commission the sculpture. Most imprortantly, I felt Mr. Gupta understood how meaningful this was for me, saying that he would personally watch over the production of the murti. All of the arrangements with Cottage9 were clearly explained and smoothly completed. And, while an investment - comparative to other sites at which I have purchased this intricately produced art, I felt the price was quite reasonable. The creation of the sculpture took between 2-3 months; when the murti arrived, it was packed extremely well in a sealed wooden crate; its journey from India to the U.S. was completed without mishap. And the Sri Rama murti was indeed very beautiful & everything I could have hoped for. I would unhesitatingly recommend Cottage9 if one is looking for authentic, beautiful artwork from India.
Special Comments
A limited edition print by an Australian artist purchased in 2004.