favorite gifts

A frangipani flower crowns the face of a Balinese woman. Depicting her portrait in hibiscus wood, Eka presents this exquisite mask. Hibiscus wood varies widely in its tones and patterns, thus each mask is an absolutely unique work of art.

The OM symbol, representing all sounds and symbolizing the essence of the universe, is nestled among frangipani blossoms in this magnificent hand carved suar wood wall relief panel by Balinese artisan Seji Taram.

Known as om or aum, omkara is the root of all sounds, emitted as a mantra during meditation. It is believed all desires will vanish, thus attaining self-realization and the highest of knowledge. This one letter symbolizes the most high in the Hindu pantheon, representing every kind of trinity such as Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva, past-present-future, birth-life-death; creation-preservation-destruction, and waking-dreaming-deep sleep.

Indian elephants parade through a leafy forest. Gulam Rasool depicts them in a regal jewelry box. A master at traditional jali or openwork carving, he works in natural soapstone.

Nature treasures favorite moments through the handcrafted art of Komang Sulaksana. He dyes pandan leaves in a rich shade of brown, then weaves it to create the covers of the photo albums. The rice straw pages are separated by thin Doorslag paper. Featuring 20 pages each, the albums are bound with cotton and decorated with a cinnamon stick that is tied with agel cords. Each page is designed to hold one 4x6 photograph in a vertical direction, for a total of 20 photos per album.

From Suresh and Devender Garg, this finely detailed sculpture honors Lord Ganesha. The beloved man-elephant, Ganesha is the son of Shiva and Durga, and has the power to keep under control the occult forces that bring disaster upon humankind. He holds an axe and lash to protect the world from evil and disaster. On his third hand he holds his favorite dessert, and with his right hand he blesses the faithful. The Hindu deity appears on a lotus throne surrounded by mice, his vehicle to transcend the different plains of life as symbol of the mind's power.

Perched on a topiary tree, a peacock enjoys the freedom of his palace garden. The bird and companions are sculpted from a single block of kadam wood. This astonishing statuette from Suresh and Devender Garg features an adult peacock with a smaller bird on its back and a third tiny peacock inside the latticed body. The exquisite birds were favorites with royal courtiers of the Mughal empire and figure widely in contemporary Indian art.

Nature treasures favorite moments through the handcrafted art of Komang Sulaksana. He dyes pandan leaves in a rich shade of brown, then weaves it to create the covers of the photo albums. The rice straw pages are separated by thin Doorslag paper. Featuring 20 pages each, the albums are bound with cotton and decorated with a cinnamon stick that is tied with agel cords. Each page is designed to hold two 4x6 photographs in a horizontal direction, for a total of 40 photos per album.