'Aloka' Tea Box in Printed Wood

Provenance

The Aloka tea box belongs to the North Indian tradition of decorative woodware — wooden forms treated with surface print and sealed under a waterproof lacquer to produce objects that are functional and decorative in equal measure. Each box is individually cut and worked in wood, its surface printed with a multicolour ornamental pattern on a warm beige ground and sealed under resin. The tradition comes from workshops in Delhi NCR and western Uttar Pradesh, where the vocabulary of India's painted woodwork is adapted to contemporary domestic storage forms.

The beige and multicolour palette of Aloka belongs to the warm neutral register of Indian decorative tradition — the natural base from which ornament emerges, the ground that carries pattern without competing with it. The ornament is present across the surface; the beige ground keeps it legible and calm. Aloka in Sanskrit names light — specifically the light of awareness, the brightness that makes things visible, the clarity of illumination. The warm neutral of the beige ground holds the ornament in the quality of clear, steady light.

The waterproof surface makes this decorative tea bag storage box suited to everyday counter use. Each piece is individually handcrafted; print placement and colour tone may vary slightly between pieces.

Disclaimer

• These pieces are handcrafted in wood with a printed surface. Variations in tone and colour are a natural feature of the process.
• Minor differences in print registration or surface texture should be understood as the signature of individual craft, not a defect.