Traditional Indian arts and crafts treasure trove is full of
amazingly beautiful pieces of works and the stunning artistry of Indian bone
and mother of pearl inlay work is another incredibly amazing jewel in this
precious treasure.
For my exploration, I attempted a faux bone inlay project but
before I share that with you, here’s a bit of history about bone inlay work.
Inlay work has been in practice since very early on in human
history. In Byzantium in the west and in Egypt in the east, ivory was used
extensively for inlaying. Ivory assumed great importance in Iran and Iraq, and
especially in Omayyad Spain. On an ivory chest in the Paris, Louvre Museum it
is written that it was made for Abdurrahman Salisinoglu El Mugirat, Caliph of
Cordoba, and it is dated 968!! It is known that mother of pearl and
tortoiseshell were used in India in the 1560's. In Indian Muslim objects
however, ivory is predominant, and the gate of the Taj Mahal is a beautiful
example of this.
Inlay work seen in India is the direct descendant of the
Mughal era and shows a strong Persian influence. The technique of inlay
basically involves making shallow carvings on the surface of wood or stone
(generally marble), the shallows between the normal carvings are then filled
either with metal or precious and semi-precious stones. The finished item is a
profusion of patterns and inlaid material. A large number of products like:
tables, pots, trays, boxes, etc have been endowed with beautiful inlay work.
Kashmir, Gujarat, Karnataka and Rajasthan are known for their
wood inlay work.
Bone inlay has marked its presence for centuries in the art
and architecture of Indian history. The finesse associated with this always
brings to mind royalty, opulence, and richness. Regions in India exhibit proficiency in different techniques
of working bone inlay products. Craftsmen from Rajasthan delicately shape
fragments of camel bone into beautiful floral patterns to be set into resins of
different colors to create visually stunning motifs and patterns. Karnataka was
famous for ivory inlay worked into precious wood. Ivory comes from the tusks of
elephants. Bone on the other hand is from the fibulae of large animals such as
camels and cattle or from the ribs of water buffalos.
In the inlaying method, the surface which is to be decorated is
marked with a sharp pointy tool. The grooves of designs which are to be
embedded are opened with a fine chisel and the material is set into them. The
motifs whose outlines are thus drawn are carved out to a depth of two or three millimeters
using gouges and prepared for the bone inlays. Working together with
woodworking art form results in beautiful pieces of carved wood inlaid
beautifully with bone and other items.
My Faux Bone Inlay Project:
This simple shadow box had been lying around for a few years and was
screaming for some adornment. To achieve my faux bone inlay look I choose to stencilling as the method. Some good quality acrylic paints, an assortment of stencils, and a simple stencil brush or a stencil pouncer tool. When choosing a piece to try your hand at faux bone inlay do choose a wood piece with large flat surfaces. It makes for a more dramatic stencilling and also you don't have to manipulate the pattern to fit small spaces as much as I had to.
Do remember the golden rule of stenciling; an almost
dry brush. After you dip the brush in paint dab off almost all of it on a paper
towel and then begin stenciling using a pouncing motion. If you are a stencil newbie
trust me on this… It will save you a lot of tears! I learnt this the hard way. You can go over the stencil again later if you feel you need more coverage. For this project I did go over 2-3 times for full deep coverage. It also helps give a more even brushstroke-less look.
I taped off sections using crafter's tacky tape to get straight
lines. I used a combination of stencils to get this particular motif and design
keeping in mind my research and some common patterns in bone inlay work. I even
made my own stencil for the top part. In addition to attention to the pattern I
kept in mind some distinctive features of bone inlay. In inlay work, for borders
and edgings, bone is cut and inlaid in sections resulting in that broken line
feature. I made sure to break my border lines too! I do believe it’s the small details
that make all the difference.
I cleaned up some of the smudges and sharpened some of the
outlines using a small cotton ear bud. To seal my beautiful work, I sprayed the
box with two coats of a satin sealant spray.
I do own a few authentic inlay pieces like a bone inlay box from Indonesia and a small inlay end table from Karnataka, and an ivory inlaid key chain. Original inlay pieces can be very expensive depending on the size of the item. A faux version is a simple affordable way to bring in a little bit of appreciation. This box originally purchased for a memory box project will
now be used for housing and displaying some of my jewelry above my jewelry
cabinet. But honestly this was super easy and I think I might this year attempt
to faux inlay a much larger piece.
Furniture and pieces inlaid with bone are always personality
pieces and even small pieces can add major impact. Bone is naturally reflective
and the simple ivory color has so much depth and dimension. In bone inlay we
can see the magic of this work combined with antique wood craft to create art
that we can live, love, and appreciate.
Credits and interesting links:
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