Collective Art with Natural Colors & Indigenous music

Rooted in Rhythm

A Collective Art Ritual by ColorAshram × Lunasole

For Echoes of the Earth Festival’s well being edition, ColorAshram and Lunasole came together to offer a space of pause, presence, and deep listening through an immersive wellbeing art experience titled Rooted in Rhythm at the Alliance française de bangalore

This was not about learning a technique.
It was about remembering how to feel — together.

What unfolded was a living ritual where sound, silence, movement, colour, and community co-created a single collective artwork.

Below is the full method — shared so this practice can travel, adapt, and grow.

1. ARRIVAL INTO STILLNESS

Participants were welcomed and invited to:

• Keep bags and phones aside

• Step into a circle

• Witness the empty cloth blanket placed at the centre

The facilitator introduced the intention:

“Today, we will create one artwork together — not from control, but from connection.”

The empty cloth became a mirror of possibility.

2. ENTERING THE BODY (Eyes Closed)

Participants stood or sat comfortably in a circle.

With gentle music by Siddharth, they were guided by Kalpana and Aarshiaa to:

• Notice unfinished thoughts

• Arrive fully in the body

• Listen to the sounds around them

They were invited to release self-judgment and surrender to the collective energy.

Siddharth Venkat then spoke about rhythm as life itself — found in breath, heartbeat, seasons, and sound.

Participants were asked:

“What images come to you when you hear Rooted in Rhythm?
A place? A feeling? A memory?”

They slowly returned, opening their eyes when ready.

3. SHARED LANGUAGE

A chart was placed on the floor.
Participants called out words and images.
The group voted (thumbs up/down/flat) to find a shared emotional landscape.

Then they were introduced to:

• Natural colour palettes

• Printing tools

• Textures and techniques

Each person chose what called to them.

They formed groups of 3–4.

4. PHASE ONE — COLLECTIVE FLOW

Music began.
Participants worked only with the shared intention — not individual stories.
They explored colour, water, texture, and form together.

5. PHASE TWO — PERSONAL EXPRESSION

Music shifted.
Participants were guided inward:

“What wants to move through you now?”

They painted again — some even foraged materials from outside.

6. PHASE THREE — BLOCK PRINTING

Another musical shift.
The group layered rhythm through repetition, pressure, and pattern.

7. PHASE FOUR — REFLECTION

Participants paused, observed the artwork, and gently refined it.
Facilitators added their own quiet marks.

8. CLOSING CIRCLE

With eyes closed again, each person shared:

“How has this been for you?”

Every voice was heard.

9. GRATITUDE

The circle closed with joined hands, silence, and thanks.

The final artwork was no longer cloth.
It was memory, breath, rhythm, and belonging.

WHY THIS MATTERS

Rooted in Rhythm reminds us:

• We heal through making together

• We slow down through listening

• We reconnect through colour and sound

In a world that rushes, this was a pause.

And in that pause — something ancient returned- primal and fearless