We work directly with independent makers, family workshops, and craft guilds. We believe artistic value begins with recognizing the person who held the tool, mixed the clay, and ground the pigment.
Meera Devi learned Madhubani painting as a child, sitting alongside her mother and grandmother in their village in Bihar. Over twenty-five years she has developed a style that stays close to the traditional vocabulary — fish, birds, village scenes, ritual motifs — while working with a confidence and precision that comes from decades of daily practice. She uses handmade paper and natural pigments where possible, though she also works with acrylic inks for longevity. Her paintings are dense with pattern but never cluttered; each element has a place and a reason.
Ramesh Soni comes from a family of brass workers in Jodhpur. His grandfather supplied vessels and utensils to households across the region; his father shifted toward decorative work as demand changed. Ramesh trained under his father from age fourteen and now runs a small workshop with two assistants. He works primarily in brass and occasionally in copper, producing vessels, figurines and decorative objects using sand-casting, hand-hammering and lathe-finishing techniques. His work has a clean, substantial quality — not overly ornate, not minimal, but well-proportioned and solid.
Lakshmi Narayanan practices Tanjore painting, a tradition rooted in the temple art of Thanjavur. He studied under a master painter for six years before opening his own studio. Tanjore paintings are distinctive for their use of gold foil, semi-precious stones and raised plaster work to create images of deities, courtly scenes and geometric compositions. Lakshmi brings a steady hand and a deep familiarity with the iconographic conventions of South Indian art. He also creates geometric and architectural compositions that draw on the same materials and techniques but suit contemporary spaces.
Kamal Prasad is a potter working from a small studio on the outskirts of Varanasi. His family has made earthenware for three generations — utilitarian pieces for cooking, storage and ritual use. Kamal continues this tradition but has expanded into decorative pottery and sculptural work. He uses a kick wheel, shapes each piece by hand, and fires in a wood-fuelled kiln. His glazes are simple — earth tones, ash glazes, occasional copper oxide greens — and his forms tend toward the solid and grounded. Nothing he makes is rushed; the pace of the wheel sets the pace of the work.
Santati Arts regularly visits rural ateliers across India. We review craft lineage, documentation, and material integrity before onboarding.
