Rangoli, also known as kolam or Muggu, is a folk art from India in which patterns are created on the floor in living rooms or courtyards using materials such as colored rice, dry flour, colored sand or flower petals. It is usually made during Diwali, Onam, Pongal and other Indian festivals. They are meant to be sacred welcoming areas for the Hindu deities. The ancient symbols have been passed down through the ages, from each generation to the next, keeping both the art form and the tradition alive. Similar practices are followed in different Indian states: in Tamil Nadu, there is Kolam in Tamil Nadu; Mandana in Rajasthan; Chaookpurna in Chhattisgarh; Alpana in West Bengal; Aripana in Bihar; Chowk pujan in Uttar Pradesh; Muggu in Andhra Pradesh and others.

“Wer in der Natur, der Kunst oder dem Menschen Gott nicht finden kann, der findet ihn nirgendwo” (Who cannot find God in the nature, the art or the person, that nowhere finds him). Photo: Hunstiger Hohlweg. (Photo by Norbert)

“Eye of the Tower” by Mehmet Yasa; Verona, Italy. “The staircase and the bell looks like an eye. Architecture can fascinate us in many ways”. (Photo by Mehmet Yasa/Art of Building Photography Awards 2017)

An art installation called “Double Ducks” by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman is seen at Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, Friday, June 9, 2023. Two giant inflatable ducks made a splash in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor on Friday, marking the return of a pop-art project that sparked a frenzy in the city a decade ago. (Photo by Louise Delmotte/AP Photo)

In this January 23, 2015 photo, Guillermo Luna Martinez, 36, carries freshly painted piñatas representing Disney's Frozen snowman character Olaf downstairs to where his wife Elvia Vicente Albarran will use paper to craft the character's eyes, teeth, and distinctive tuft of hair, at the family's workshop in the Iztapalapa neighborhood of Mexico City. Though Luna and his wife have chosen to work in the family business, they plan to let their children, Guillermo, 10, and Melissa, 9, decide for themselves. “Who knows if the business will last forever”, said Luna, “I'd prefer that they study and get a career, for them to have a better future”. (Photo by Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo)

Model Helen Kwok displays the nail art completed by a competitor at the Canada Nail Cup in Vancouver, Monday, February 16, 2015. Nail artists competed in multiple categories at the event, which according to organizers is the only nail competition in the country. (Photo by Darryl Dyck/AP Photo/The Canadian Press)

New Jersey based artist, Joe Iurato creates art using hand-cut paper and spray paint to make small wood cutout figures and placed in public spaces. According to Iurato, “a puddle can become a lake, a small crack in a cement wall can become a magnificent climb, a planter box can become a place for a child to play, and a shadow might be a tangible space for a few seconds a day”. Photo: “Small World”. (Photo by Joe Lurato)