chalk drawings

My friend Jessica took these photographs in India. They show chalk drawings made for a spring agricultural festival called Pongal. These chalk drawings are placed in front of entryways and mark hopes for a bountiful harvest.

I was interested in seeing how the chalk drawings begin with a grid of dots. I had the kids use this technique to keep track of the balance of their designs and it seemed to help. Also, they are using some sort of colored powder instead of chalk. They apply the powder to a wet ground with their fingers and get a most vibrant and intense color that we were not able to duplicate with our simple chalk sticks.