Bringing craftsmanship, calligraphy together

An amazing collection of Indian arts and craft works which has brought craftsmanship and calligraphy together mesmerized people gathered at India Habitat Centre here on Sunday on the opening of AKSHARA: Crafting Indian Scripts.

The Chief Minister of Delhi Sheila Dikshit and Chairman of Indian Council for Cultural Relations Dr Karan Singh, who inaugurated the exhibition, extolled Jaya Jaitly, President of Dastkari Haat Samiti (a non - profit national association consisting of and working for the economic and social development of traditional crafts people) for her efforts to bring a range of such wonderful work under one roof.

While talking to TSI Jaya Jaitly, said, “I had to sit with these artists and craftsmen to guide them how to do what to make their work fit for the exhibition.”

On future of Indian art and craft globally she said, “Indian art and craft has a great future. With this exhibition we are showing off so many of our languages, we are showing off our skill and we are showing off that we can do calligraphy.”

“The only thing we lack is that we don’t know how to present our work, so I am trying to present this work in a very modern setting. This shows that they can be a part of any international setting and do wonderful work,” she added.

The project involves 58 artists from 16 states and highlights 21 art forms. It took eight months to produce the art and craft work for the exhibition which will be open for public viewing till September 21st.

Some of the craft works being showcased during the exhibition are Jharna Patashitra Painting from West Bengal, Mithila painting from Bihar, Sanjhi art from Uttar Pradesh, wood and lacquer work of Karnataka, Terracota from Kerala, Hand Painted pottery, wood craving from Haryana and embroidery from Bihar.