Tarkashi is the craft of inlaying a metal wire in wood. It is practiced in the craft pockets of Sahranpur & Nagina, U.P. Brass wire is generally used to inlay in Sheesham wood as the base. The main reason to use Sheesham wood as the base is its ability to grip tightly the inlaid brass wire, while other woods are not able to hold the wire well.
The brass wire is flattened and inlaid horizontally on the wood base. The Beehive India has reinterpreted the Tarkashi craft by inlaying the brass wire vertically into the wood base, with the crossection of the wire showing as dots. This has resolved the issue of wood not being able to hold the wire tightly. We have explored other woods like Wenge Wood, Jackfruit, Rubberwood, and even bamboo as base woods successfully.
We do precision marking of the artwork on the wood base, so it becomes easier for the artisan to inlay the wire and the design develops on the wood accurately. We also intend to play with different thicknesses of the brass wire on the wood base to come up with new designs.
We have also experimented with Tarkashi on Jackfruit wood,
Rubberwood & Bamboo.
