'Paras' Tea Box in Printed Wood and Resin

Provenance

The Paras tea box belongs to the North Indian tradition of decorative woodware — wooden forms treated with surface print and sealed under a resin finish to produce objects that are functional and decorative in equal measure. The resin layer is applied over the printed wood surface, giving it additional depth and translucency that a plain lacquer finish does not achieve. This approach draws on the same North Indian workshop tradition of printed woodware, extended here into a resin finish process that gives the antique gold palette its particular warmth and depth.

The antique gold palette of Paras belongs to the tradition of Indian heritage objects — the colour of aged metal, of manuscript illumination, of the objects that have been present at daily life long enough to have acquired patina. Paras in Sanskrit and Hindi names the philosopher's stone — the legendary substance that transforms base metal into gold, the transmuting force that turns the ordinary into the precious. The antique gold surface of this wooden tea box holds that quality: the resin deepens the print into something that reads as material rather than surface decoration.

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

Disclaimer

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