Frangipani Forest

                                                         FRANGIPANI FOREST


The Frangipani Forest series took shape many years ago, when we were living in Jaipur. Pictures rifled from my store of random notebooks, stuffed full of quick pen & ink drawings and pencil sketches, then taken and polished into digital images are just one way that I've tried to capture the extraordinary spirit of Rajasthan. Looking for a way to create something different I developed this delicate, stylised Forest which I hope manages to bring out the magical aspect of a place I grew to love. Somewhere 'always full of moving shadows and light,' as Rudyard Kipling described it.

And it's not just the famous habitats, the rich wildlife and vibrant colours, but also domestic animals like the placid buffalos, skinny goats and roaming cows. Many pages record the hard-working people who farm and tend livestock on the fringes of the Thar desert, in often difficult conditions, yet always with dignity and beauty and a deep understanding of their land. I drew them all.

Tigers and leopards still prowl amongst the ruins. Elegant waders and other waterfowl inhabit the reed-beds fringing the jheels where deer and elephants come to drink, Monkeys jibber and chatter in the trees above them and everywhere parrots and peacocks and brainfever birds call throughout the day. Jackals howl after dark. The forest is never silent. And in the distant villages drums echo, for feasts and weddings are their joy.  One never forgets. Frangipani Forest is a dream of such things.

Mishi Bellamy. 2021