President Mukherjee to launch National Mission on Libraries on Feb 3

New Delhi, Jan 31: 

President Shri Pranab Mukherjee will launch the National Mission on Libraries (NML), an ambitious and lofty initiative of the Ministry of Culture to modernise and digitally link public libraries across the country, at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on February 3.

On the occasion, Shri Mukherjee will formally inaugurate the NML’s guidelines, logo and website in the presence of Culture Minister Smt. Chandresh Kumari Katoch and senior officials of the ministry, a top bureaucrat revealed today.

Nine important constituents of the NML (nmlindia.nic.in) include upgradation of infrastructure, digitization and modernisation, census of libraries and their development as knowledge centres and transformation of libraries into empowering and inclusive institutions, Mr V Srinivas, Joint Secretary with the Union Ministry of Culture, told a press conference here. 

Approved by the government in November last year, NML was set up in pursuance of a report of the National Knowledge Commission, which recommended a total revamp of the Library and Information Service sector to serve the changing needs and expectations of the users and give a fillip to the library movement in the country. “The NML plans to build a knowledge society by bringing in libraries across the country on a single platform,” Mr Srinivas pointed out.

Under the scheme, six libraries under the Culture Ministry, 35 Central Libraries in states and 35 District Libraries will be developed as model libraries. Emphasis will on developing these libraries in economically backward districts. Further, 628 district libraries across the states would be provided network connectivity. For setting up of the model libraries, existing libraries would be identified in consultation with the state governments to improve infrastructure and upgrade technology used by them.

NML also intends to create a National Virtual Library of India in the national capital to facilitate a comprehensive database on digital resources, carry out a census on the resources available in the libraries and conduct a study on the reading habits in different regions of the country.   

In the revamped libraries, cataloguing will be done not only of books and journals but also of all policies of the government in public domain to facilitate easy access and research work. Efforts will also be made to provide reading material in a multilingual mode.

Besides upgrading the infrastructure of public libraries, a major component of NML is to initiating need-based training programmes to develop managerial skills and IT competencies of their personnel in tune with demands of the Internet era.  

The chief objectives of NML are to create a world class library system, foster reading habits, facilitate research work and provide information to people in a timely and convenient manner which is also universal and equitable.

The execution of the scheme will entail an expenditure of Rs 400 crore during the 12th Plan period (2012-17), and it is designed to benefit the entire spectrum of population — students, researchers, scientists, professionals, children, artists and differently abled persons. While the survey of libraries would be completed within one year, the other objectives of the scheme would be achieved by the end of the 12th Plan period. 

Kolkata-based Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation is the nodal agency for the implementation of NML, a 10-member body headed by Prof. Deepak Pental, former Vice Chancellor of Delhi University.

Public libraries to go digital under Culture Ministry’s National Mission on Libraries

New Delhi, Jan 30: In a move that would deliver a world class library system, public libraries across the country are to be digitized and ramped up under an ambitious plan of the government to foster reading habits, facilitate research work and make people information-fluent. 

Under the scheme, six libraries under the Culture Ministry, 35 Central Libraries in states and 35 District Libraries will be developed as model libraries, with emphasis on economically backward districts. In addition, 629 district libraries across the states would be provided network connectivity, facilitating their transformation from physical to virtual.

Anchored in the Culture Ministry, National Mission on Libraries (NML) will also create a National Virtual Library of India to facilitate a comprehensive database on digital resources with information generated in the country.  

To be mounted at an expenditure of Rs 400 crore during the 12^th Plan period (2012-17), NML is designed to benefit all categories of people -- students, researchers, scientists, professionals, children, artists, differently abled persons and neo- and non-literates. 

Mr. Ravindra Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, said the objective of NML is to expand the learning capacity of the country and deliver a world class library system that provides information in a timely, efficient and convenient manner. 

“Making information more accessible is now paramount in the library sector. Our libraries may be filled with books, but in the digital age, they need to provide access to information that is available online. Digital libraries provide speedy access to information and they also bridge barriers of time and space,” he added.

Approved by the government in November last year, NML was set up in pursuance of a report of the Sam Pitroda-headed National Knowledge Commission, which recommended an overhaul of the Library and Information Service sector.

Kolkata-based Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation (RRRLF) has been designated the nodal agency for the implementation of NML, a 10-member body headed by Prof. Deepak Pental, former Vice Chancellor of Delhi University. 

“It is an exciting mission. Libraries continue to remain relevant in our lives. The challenge is not only to have large quantities of materials and resources, but to also make them available to people and empower them,” said Dr K K Banerjee, Director General, RRRLF.

NML intends to create a baseline data of libraries in India through a quantitative and qualitative survey of 5,000 libraries to collect detailed information on quality characteristics and performance indicators in terms of their traditional role as readership promoters and information providers. It would also be assessed whether these libraries meet the requirement of their patrons in the Internet era. 

For setting up of the model libraries, existing libraries would be identified in consultation with the state governments to improve infrastructure and upgrade technology used by them. Efforts would be made to locate them along with educational institutions. 

Further, a census is to be carried out on the resources available in the libraries. A study on the reading habits in different regions of the country and amongst the rural and urban communities has also been planned.

While the survey of libraries would be completed within one year, the other objectives of the scheme would be achieved by the end of the 12th Plan period. 

 “The content on NVL should be available to anyone who has access to the Internet. In new content generation, children’s needs should be given priority. Content will also be generated on skill development and matters concerning regional and local interest,” Dr Banerjee said, adding: “There is also need to create a ‘youth space’ in libraries – informal and comfortable with ICT facility.”

Under the constitution, “Library” is a State subject. Among the 16 states which have legislated on the subject so far, only eight have a reasonably good public library system.

“A major focus area of NML will be to improve the library system services and infrastructure of the states, which are lagging behind. The government is determined to make public libraries vibrant institutions and transform them into empowering and inclusive institutions,” said Mr. V. Srinivas, Joint Secretary, Culture Ministry.

Observing that the advent of digital technology and Internet connectivity has created two sections of ‘digital haves’ and digital have-nots’, he stressed that it is no longer a matter of choice but rather a compulsion to find ways and means of bridging the gap between the two sections. “Virtual library will go a long way in filling up the gap,” he said. 

NML also envisages initiating need-based training programmes for various categories of professionals working in public libraries. It would also develop managerial skills and IT competencies in existing personnel in public libraries.  

Catalogue Launched by painter Ghulammohammed Sheikh, Tate Modern’s Chris Dercon

New Delhi, January 30: 

After taking the contemporary art world by storm with its first edition a year ago, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale gave a glimpse of what to expect in the upcoming edition this December as the organisers of the pioneering festival launched the much-awaited official catalogue in the national capital.

 

Ghulam Mohammed Sheikh & Chris Dercon

The 770-page official catalogue of the first Indian biennale held from December 2012 to March 2013 was released by renowned Indian artist Ghulammohammed Sheikh, who handed over the first copy to Chris Dercon, Director of London’s Tate Modern art gallery.

“It was an exceptional and exemplary biennale,” Sheikh said at a well-attended event on Wednesday evening at the DLF South Court in New Delhi’s Saket Select City Walk.

The catalogue launch function also saw the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) presenting its new curator, renowned artist Jitish Kallat, of its second year beginning on December 12.

“The Kochi Biennale is the ideal spot to reflect on the world today,” said Kallat, who is tasked with the unenviable challenge of repeating the huge success of its first edition. 

Dercon noted that it was very rare that the first biennale is a success anywhere in the world. “I am curious about what the new curator is going to do,” he added. “I believed in the Kochi Biennale from the very beginning and I also believe in the second edition."

The first Kochi-Muziris Biennale has also gone online through the collaboration between the Biennale Foundation and the Google Art Project, which brings museums to people on their mobile phones and computers.

“This is the first-ever biennale in the world to be archived digitally,” said Riyas Komu, the event’s co-founder and co-curator with well-known artist Bose Krishnamachari. “That is a tremendous technological and technical achievement,” Komu added.

Amit Sood, the head of Google Art Project, said those who hadn’t gone to the Kochi Biennale could now visit the whole event from any part of the world. “You can’t replicate the physical experience, but you can actually walk through the beautiful venues of the biennale through our work,” he added.

The official biennale catalogue contains essays by Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development Shashi Tharoor and art theorist and curator Geeta Kapoor besides details information and photos of the works of each artist who participated in the first edition. Co-published with the Kerala-based DC Books in a distribution collaboration, the biennale catalogue was financially supported by the Nirlon Foundation Trust, the Mumbai-based leading charitable foundation, and the National Culture Fund of the Government of India by providing 100 per cent tax deductions for the donation. The catalogue was also supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India and the Government of Kerala.

The catalogue, considered a collector’s item, sums up the values and principles under which the biennale was conceptualized. It was with the similar spirit of the ancient maritime explorers that the KBF set out to do India's first biennale, according to the biennale founders in the book. “The water was uncharted. The vessel untested,” a senior functionary said. “The wind and waves hostile and surging. And, the task daunting.”

Among those who spoke at the event included the Biennale Foundation trustee and former senior Indian Police Service officer Hormis Tharakan besides Ms Kapoor and Poonam Bhagat Shroff of Nirlon.

The catalogue extensively features the woks of the 89 artists from 23 countries who took part in the inaugural edition of the biennale held in 14 venues and over 300,000 sq ft of exhibition area. The event had three-fourth of its works that were site-specific.

Digitization crucial in sharing museum artworks: American expert

From Left to Right- 

Dr. Venu V, DG, National Museum 

and Dr Douglas Druick, 

President of the Art Institute of Chicago

New Delhi, Jan 30: Digitization is gaining increasing importance today as museums across the world want to reach out to the public like never before, according to the head of one the foremost art institutes of the world.

“Every museum should digitize its collections and put them online for wider sharing with the public,” Dr Douglas Druick, President of the Art Institute of Chicago, said at the inaugural talk of a lecture series that National Museum here has launched to bring together experts and practitioners from the arts and culture for Indian audiences.

In fact, digitization has been one of the modern-time strengths of the 1893-founded organization in the US, he told a packed hall of enthusiasts at his talk on ‘The Art Institute of Chicago: Embodying Excellence in American Museum Practices’. “We are very happy to share our knowledge and experience with other museums across the globe,” the expert added.

The head of the Art Institute, which has now collaborated with India’s Ministry of Culture to invite curators and museum practitioners of the country to visit the establishment in America’s third most populous city, noted that an art museum is not just about collections and exhibitions.

“It involves deep research and interaction with academic institutions and curators to gain credibility and make way for new initiatives in the field of fine arts,” pointed out Dr Druick, who has led key curatorial departments at the museum’s Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture as well as the Department of Prints and Drawings.

Dr Douglas Druick, President of the Art Institute of Chicago responding to questions at the lecture

As for public-private partnerships in the field of art conservation and storage facilities, he said museums should invest in strengthening their own facilities as well. “For museums where adequate space is a problem, such steps are being taken after ensuring proper security of the objects,” added the scholar, in reply to a post-talk question.

National Museum Director-General Dr Venu V said Indian museums need to have a robust art acquisition policy to be able to expand their collections, to which Dr Druick said his Art Institute was deeply engaged with acquiring new works. “In such instances, the faculties of a senior curator are very useful. Often curators submit proposals for purchasing or acquiring new objects for the museum; sometimes such acquisitions are also funded by sponsors,” the speaker said.

Jyotsana Singh, Director of Jammu-based Amar Mahal Museum and Library, sought to clarify the need to involve schoolchildren and develop educational programmes to make museums popular for the young generation in the country. Dr Druick concurred to the view, saying it was important to involve the young in museum activities to secure their interest for the future.

National Museum has already begun a pioneering volunteer guide programme that takes schoolchildren around its galleries.

Dr Venu, while noting that the ‘NM Lecture’ series would provide an exclusive opportunity for audiences to interact with experts, revealed that the February lecture will be delivered on the 9th by Dr. Hans Martin Hinz, President of International Council of Museums, an acclaimed international body for museum professionals on the theme of Global Trends in Museums.

इंडिया आर्ट फेयर का शुभारम्भ

सुबोध गुप्ता की पेंटिंग 

30 जनवरी 2014 

आज से भारत की चाक्षुस कला के सबसे बड़े मेले का शुभारम्भ दिल्ली में हुआ।  इंडिया आर्ट फेयर के नाम से प्रति वर्ष होने वाले इस मेले में विश्व भर से करीब 150 कला संस्थानों ने भाग लिया है जिनमे लगभग 400 कलाकारों की  कलाकृतियां प्रदर्शित की गई है। आज शुरू हुए इस मेले का समापन 2 फरवरी को होगा। 

सुबोध गुप्ता की कृति 

सूरज कुमार काशी अपनी पेंटिंग के साथ 

यू. एस. पाठक अपनी विडियो आर्ट के साथ  

सचिन्द्र नाथ झा कि कृति 

अरुण पंडित की मूर्ति 

चिन्तन उपाध्याय की कृति 

तार की जाली द्वारा बनाई गई एक कृति 

बुधवार को जारी होगा कोच्चि बिनाले कैटलॉग

अपनी अंतर्राष्ट्रीय प्रतिष्ठा को आगे बढ़ाते हुए भारत का अब तक का पहला बिनाले पिछले साल केरल में 96 दिन के समारोह के सम्पन्न होने के 10 महीने बाद अपना कैटलॉग जारी करेगा। कोच्चि&मुजिरिस बिनाले कैटलॉग राष्ट्रीय राजधानी में कल आधिकारिक तौर पर जारी किया जाएगा। अंतर्राष्ट्रीय स्तर पर प्रसिद्ध चित्रकार&विद्वान गुलाम मोहम्मद शेख लंदन के टेट मॉडर्न आर्ट गैलरी के निदेशक क्रिस डरकान को 770 पृष्ठ की पुस्तक को समर्पित करेंगे।  

12 /12 /12 से 7 मार्च 2013 तक आयोजित अग्रणी समकालीन समारोह के आयोजकों के अनुसार निरलॉन फाउंडेशन द्वारा वित्तीय मदद और केरल सरकार के संस्कृति मंत्रालय के समर्थन सहित अन्य के समर्थन से कोच्चि बिनाले फाउंडेशन ¼ के बी एफ ½ के द्वारा प्रकाशित इस पुस्तक में महोत्सव की भावनाओं की सही और परिपूर्ण अभिव्यक्ति मिलती  है।

के बी एफ ने कहा कि बिनाले के संपन्न होने के बाद राष्ट्रीय संस्कृति निधि और मुम्बई स्थित एक प्रमुख चैरिटेबल ट्रस्ट निरलॉन के समर्थन से अनोखे ढंग से इस कैटलॉग का प्रकाशन किया है।   बुधवार को आयोजित समारोह को इस वर्ष सम्भावित रूप से होने वाले 2014 के एम बी के क्यूरेटर जितीश कलात अन्य लोगों के साथ सम्बोधित करेंगे। अन्य वक्ताओं में के बी एफ के सचिव रियास कोमू के अलावा पूर्व शीर्ष पुलिस अधिकारी होरमिस थारकन, गूगल सांस्कृतिक संस्थान के निदेशक अमित सूद, कला इतिहासकार गीता कपूर शामिल होंगे।

के एम बी गूगल कला परियोजना पर चित्रित किया गया दुनिया का पहला बिनाले भी है। 

बिनाले के उद्घाटन संस्करण में 23 देशों से 89 कलाकार शामिल हुए थे जिन्होंने 14 अलग&अलग स्थानों और तीन लाख वर्ग फुट वाले प्रदर्शनी क्षेत्र में प्रदर्शन किया। कोच्चि मुजिरिस बिनाले का पहला संस्करण इसके कार्यों का तीन चौथाई था। इसने संगीत, नृत्य, रंगमंच और सिनेमा के महोत्सवों के साथ एक निरंतर शिक्षा कार्यक्रम का भी आयोजन किया था।   

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2014

पिछले दिनों पटना में युवा कलाकारों कि एक कला कार्यशाला का आयोजन किया गया , कुछ झलकियां -

पिछले दिनों बिहार ललित कला अकादमी की ओर से पटना में युवा कलाकारों कि एक कला कार्यशाला का आयोजन किया गया। प्रस्तुत है कुछ झलकियां -

"Signature of Diversity" कला प्रदर्शनी का शुभारम्भ दिल्ली में

दिल्ली के इंडिया हैबिटेट सेंटर स्थित विज़ुअल कला दीर्घा में "Signature of Diversity" नामक कला प्रदर्शनी का शुभारम्भ पिछले दिनों हुआ।  तीन दिनों तक चलने वाली इस प्रदर्शनी में देश के विभिन्न हिस्सों से कुल 20 कलाकारों की चित्रकला, मूर्तिकला तथा छायाचित्र प्रदर्शित कि गई है। कलाकारों में बिहार से अनिल कुमार सिन्हा, बिनोद कुमार गुप्ता, बिपिन कुमार, मनोज कुमार बच्चन, मदन प्रसाद गुप्ता, रविन्द्र कुमार दास, सुमन कुमार सिंह, के साथ उड़ीसा से आशीष धीर झारखण्ड से सी. आर. हेम्ब्रम, रंजीत कुमार तथा उत्तर प्रदेश से अक्षय चौहान, जय प्रकाश त्रिपाठी प्रमुख है।

इस अवसर पर एक सुन्दर कैटलॉग भी प्रकाशित किया गया। मार्सी आर्ट एंड कल्चर प्राइवेट लिमिटेड द्वारा आयोजित इस प्रदर्शनी का संचालन छायाकार एवं चित्रकार त्रिभुवन देव कर रहे हैं ।

रंगों के आकर्षण के साथ माटी की गूँज भी दिखी मीनाक्षी के चित्रों में

 मीनाक्षी झा बनर्जी के खूबसूरत चित्रों कि प्रदर्शनी इन दिनों दिल्ली की मशहूर कला दीर्घा इंडिया हैबिटेट सेंटर के विजुअल आर्ट गैलरी में चल रही है। पटना की मीनाक्षी ने अपने चित्रों में बहुत हीं खूबसूरती के साथ चटख रंगों का प्रयोग किया है जो कलाकार कि परिपक्वता को जाहिर करता है। उनके चित्रों में मिथिला कला की बारीकियों का बड़े हीं प्रभावपूर्ण तरीके से इस्तेमाल किया गया है। 

12 दिसंबर से शुरू हुई इस प्रदर्शनी को किरण पुंडीर ने क्यूरेट किया है जो 17 दिसंबर तक दर्शकों के लिए खुली रहेगी।  

गूगल कला परियोजना -गूगल सांस्कृतिक संसथान से कोच्चि मुजिरिस बिनाले 2012 को मिली अमरता

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vc dksbZ Hkh O;fDRk u flQZ dksfPpa & eqftfjl fcukys ds eq[; vk;kstu LFky fo'kky ,fLiuoky gkml esa Hkze.k dj ldrk gS] cfYd lHkh 14 vk;kstu LFkyksa dks ns[k ldrk gSS vkSj dykd`fr;ksa dks utnhdh ls vuqHko dj ldrk gSA dksfPPk & eqftfjl fcukys ds funs’kd vkSj igys laLdj.k ds lg D;wjsVj Jh cksl d`”.kekpkjh us dgk] ^^;g ,d ,sfrgkfld miyfC/k gSA ;g lkspuk gh vius vki esa foLe;dkjh gS fd vkt ls 20 lky ckn Hkh dksbZ O;fDRk 2012 esa gq, fcukys dks okLro esa vuqHko dj ldrk gSA** ds,ech ds igys laLdj.k esa 23 ns'kksa ds 89 dykdkjksa dh dyk—fr;ksa dk çn'kZu fd;k x;k vkSj yxHkx 4 yk[k yksxksa us bls ns[kkA vkjaHk esa bl izn’kZuh dks 13 ekpZ rd gh tkjh j[kus dh ;kstuk Fkh ysfdu vke yksxksa dh ekax ds dkj.k bls 17 ekpZ rd c<+k fn;k x;kAfcukys ds dk;Zdkjh funs'kd vkSj fMftVy fodkl ds izHkkjh Jh ‘osry iVsy us dgk] ^^;g ,d tcnZLr rduhdh vkSj rduhdhxr miyfC/k gSA xwxy dyk ifj;kstuk ij fcukys dh rjg dh çn'kZuh dk fey ikuk ,d cM+h pqukSrh FkhA blls igys ,slh dksf'k'k dHkh ugha dh x;hA gees ls gj O;fDr dks xwxy ds dke djus vkSj bls laHko cuk ikus ij xoZ gSA**xwxy dyk ifj;kstuk ;wtlZ dks fcukys ds vk;kstu LFkyksa dk irk yxkus eas enn djsxkA bldh ‘kwfVax ,d lIrkg ls vf/kd le; rd gq;hA rduhdh Vhe us vR;ar fof’k”V dSejksa ,oa Vªkyh iz.kkfy;kas dh enn ls bukZdqye fLFkr ,sfrgkfld njckj g‚y lfgr çn'kZuh LFkyksa rFkk muesa iznf’kZr dykd`fr;ksa ds 360 fMxzh best fy;sA njckj gkWy dks 2011 esa dksfPpa fcukys QkmaMs’ku us iqufufeZr fd;kA ;g egRokdka{kh laxzg ifj;kstuk xwxy bafM;k ds lg;ksx ls xwxy dyk ifj;kstuk vkSj dksfPpa fcukys QkmaMs’ku dk la;qDr m|e gSA xwxy dyk ifj;kstuk ds izeq[k vfer ‘kkg dgrs gSa] ^^eSa bl ckr ls vR;f/kd izlUu gwa fd Hkkjrh; vkSj varjjk"Vªh; dyk dk mR—"V laxzg ekus tkus okys Hkkjr ds vc rd ds igys fcukys us lkaLd`frd laLFkku ds lkFk gkFk feykrs gq;s bl izn’kZuh dks fo’o Hkj ds dyk izsfe;ksa ds le{k izLrqr fd;k gSA eSa Hkkjr esa gh iy dj cM+k gqvkA bl ,sfrgkfld ‘kgj dh xfy;ksa esa HkVduk eq>s vPNk yxrk gS vkSj ,sls esa esjs fy;s ;g ns[kuk [kkl gS fd fdl ekSfyd ,oa vkd"kZd rjhds ls bu xfy;ksa esa dyk dks latks;k x;k gSA**lkbcj eap ¼xwxy lkaL—frd laLFkku½ ;wtlZ dks u dsoy fofHkUu laxzgky;ksa dh mPp fjtksY;q’ku okyh rLohjksa dks ns[kus dk ekSdk nsrk gS cfYd bldh enn ls ;wtlZ vius [kqn ds ladyu rS;kj dj ldrs gSaA bl vxz.kh çkS|ksfxdh us gekjs ns[kus ds rkSj&rjhdksa vkSj dyk ds lkFk gekjs tqM+ko esa Økafrdkjh ifjorZu fd;k gSA bldh enn ls yk[kksa yksx vc mu vuqHkoksa ls xqtj ldrs gSa tks nqfu;k ds egkure laxzgky;ksa dks ns[kus ls gksrk gSA dyk nh?kkZvksa ds chp Hkze.k djus ds vykok dyk—fr;ksa dks ns[kk tk ldrk gS vkSj gj mez ds yksx bfrgkl] dykdkjksa vkSj dykd`fr;ksa ds ckjs esa tku&le> ldrs gSaA

xwxy dyk ifj;kstuk us iwjs fcukys dk laxg fd;k gS vkSj ;g mu lHkh yksxksa ds fy;s miyC/k gS ftuds ikl baVjusV dusD'ku gSA dksfPpa&eqftfjl fcukys] 2012 ds dk;ZØe funs'kd vkSj lg D;wjsVj Jh fj;kl dksew dgrs gSa] ^^;g fcukys gj ml O;fDr ds fy;s etsnkj vuqHko Fkk ftUgksaus vk;kstu LFkyksa ij ?kwe&?kwe dj dyk ds [ktkus dks ns[kkA ;g ,d ,slk fcukys Fkk tks vke yksxksa ds fy;s FkkA vc bl fcukys dks vejrk iznku dh x;h gS vkSj vc dksbZ Hkh O;fDr dHkh Hkh bu egku dykd`fr;ksa dk vkuan ys ldrk gS vkSj vk;kstu LFkyksa dks ,d rjg ls okLrfod :i esa ns[k ldrk gSA**

Second edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale to open on 12-12-2014

Kochi, Dec 12: It’s official. The 2014 edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, the country’s pioneering new-art show, will begin on 12-12-2014.

Artist Namboodiri announced the dates for the second edition of India’s only biennale in a function held at Pepper House in Fort Kochi on Thursday evening. The inaugural edition of the epoch-making art carnival had opened at the culturally-rich Fort Kochi on 12-12-2012.

The function paid tributes to the departed South African leader Nelson Mandela with a large inscription at the venue that read “Madiba! We’ll always remember you!”

Mr. Jitish Kallat, Artistic Director and curator of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2014, inaugurated the ‘Pepper House Residency’ programme on the occasion. The Residency, which is being conducted in collaboration with Pepper House, is part of the preparations towards the 2014 edition of the international platform for contemporary art.

Artist Namboodiri declaring the date of the 2014 edition 

of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale at a function held in 

Pepper House at Fort Kochi on Thursday evening. 

 MLA Mr. Dominic Presentation presided; Kochi Corporation councillors Mr. K. J. Sohan and Mr.Antony Kureethra; Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) trustees including Mr. Bose Krishnamachari, Mr. Hormis Tharakan and Mr. Bonnie Thomas were present at the announcement of the dates for the Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2014. The function began with a musical performance on harmonium by Bhasha Bhai.

Kochi Biennale Foundation representatives pointed out that the Pepper House Art Residency programme will invite artists from all artistic disciplines to live, work, and collaborate during their preferred time of working at Pepper House studio.

The Residency aims to create a dialogue between locals, artists and institutions, offering them an opportunity to establish relationships in the local community while also serving as a platform to explore their creative potentials.

The residency opens with three artists chosen by the KBF -  Avantika Bawa, an Indian artist, academic and curator who is settled in the US, German photographer Anja Bohnhof, who is supported by the Goethe Institute and Keralite painter Leon K.L.

Pepper House will also house artist Bose Krishnamachari’s travelling installation, Laboratory of Visual Arts (LaVA) – a curated collection of over 5,000 books and 1, 800 DVDs on visual arts. The library is free and open to all.

The inaugural edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale had showcased works by 89 artists from 23 countries. It saw revelry of different mediums, including painting, sculpture, installation, film, digital media and performing arts at sites in Kochi and the Muziris region. Nearly 400,000 people visited the 96-day show which started on 12/12/12.

पर्यावरण असंतुलन के प्रति चिंता

Musical Landscapes and the Goddess of Music’ explores Asian music traditions and their divine connections

New Delhi, Nov. 28: Music is “eternal and divine” and has been ascribed with magical qualities, ICCR President Dr. Karan Singh today said, making a strong case for preservation of Asia’s glorious musical traditions.

 

“Exploring music through Goddess Sarasvati and the way it has travelled in various parts of Southeast Asia is quite fascinating and a great joy,” said Dr Singh, while inaugurating an exhibition at National Museum.

A sublime convergence of technology and culture, the pioneering multimedia interactive installation, “Musical Landscapes & The Goddess of Music: Recent Advances in Interactive Art”, explores music in its scientific, artistic and spiritual dimensions and its reflections in the Goddess images across Asian cultures.   

Dr Singh, a member of the Rajya Sabha, complimented the museum and its Director General, Dr Venu V, for organising the pioneering exhibition and thereby breaking away from the traditional structures and entering a new terrain. A Museum is not merely a place for the exhibit of ancient artefacts; it has to be interactive also,” he said.  

“The exhibition takes viewers into the world of exquisite Asian music through electronic installations, digital images, sculptures and recordings of performances by masters,” said Ranjit Makkuni, an internationally acclaimed multimedia designer and accomplished musician who has mounted the innovative art show at the National Museum here. 

“It is an intriguing and fascinating show, combining of art and technology to create an exploration into Asian musical traditions,” said Dr Venu. “The project demonstrates a synthesis of technology and culture, of modern and traditional, of physical and virtual. We believe that National Museum should create spaces for such intersections”, he added.

The exhibition showcases both traditional and new instruments based on Indian Sitar, Burmese Saung Harp, Thai Xylophone, Korean Kayagum, Chinese Guzheng and Pipa, Vietnamese Dan Tranh, Javanese and Balinese Gamelan, and how these instruments have a divine connection. 

The artist has embedded new instruments with computation, allowing viewers to interact through gesture, touch, pull, movement and gaze in the exhibition environment. For instance, there is a sculpture, Abstract Woman. Embedded in the waist of the sculpture is a representation of Sri Yantra, which, upon touch, plays back the 1000 names of Goddess Lalita.

“Through my work, I have tried to demonstrate that it is possible to develop culture-friendly technologies, which can become a vehicle for preserving cultural identity, not replacing it, and how the wisdom of the past can be made accessible to people,” said Makkuni, an alumnus of IIT, Kharagpur and University of California Los Angeles (UCLA).

The exhibition combines visual splendour, aesthetics   and   technology, the attributes that define the work of the multimedia artist. As the director of New Delhi-based e design think tank,   Sacred World Research Laboratory, Makkuni is engaged in pioneering new applications in culturally rooted computing design.    . 

The exhibition comprises several sections, such as Goddesses of Music and their Iconic Transformations; forms and sculptures suggestive of the scientific and mythological imagery of sound; and the compassionate Goddesses who listen to people’s prayers. There are sections on 

Goddess Sarasvati, the goddess of wisdom and music; Kinayi, the Angels of Music, from Burma; and The Compassionate figure of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara from Japan.  There is also a section on Breath, Voice and Healing, which explores the healing properties of singing and its relationship to breath.

 

 “I try to explore innovative ways of building bridges between techno and traditional cultures. I believe engagement with culture is a valuable process to spark off technological innovation. My works show that the wisdom of traditional communities can positively negate the homogenizing aesthetics of modern media technology and help inspire new forms of indigenous information access devices,” said the artist, whose works have been displayed at leading museums and won top international awards for promoting culture, peace and environmental protection.

The exhibition will be on display till 15 January 2014

उमेश कुमार की एकल कला प्रदर्शनी

इन  दिनों दिल्ली की ललित कला अकादमी में उमेश कुमार की एकल कला प्रदर्शनी चल रही है।  इस प्रदर्शनी में उमेश ने अपने एक्रेलिक माध्यम में बने चित्रों के साथ-साथ मिश्रित माध्यम में बनी मूर्तियां ( इंस्टॉलेशन ) भी प्रदर्शित की है।

अपनी कृति के साथ उमेश 

उमेश ने अपनी कलाकृतियों में शहरों की बढ़ती जनसंख्या से उत्पन्न पानी की समस्या की ओर लोगों का ध्यान खींचने का प्रयास किया है। उनकी कृतियां लोगों को अपनी ओर खींचने के साथ-साथ उन्हें गम्भीरता से सोचने पर विवश करती है।

27 नवम्बर से शुरू हुई इस प्रदर्शनी का समापन 2 दिसम्बर को होगा। 

National Museum to host tech wizard Ranjit Makkuni’s unique multimedia exhibition, ‘Musical Landscapes and the Goddess of Music’

New Delhi, Nov. 26: Bridging technology and culture, a unique multimedia interactive exhibition seeks to unravel the mystique of music by exploring its scientific, artistic and spiritual dimensions and its reflections in the Goddessimages across Asian cultures.   

National Museum is hosting the pioneering exhibition, “Musical Landscapes & The Goddess of Music: Recent Advances in Interactive Art”, mounted by Ranjit Makkuni, a celebrated technical wizard and an accomplished musician. 

Dr Karan Singh, the ICCR President and a Rajya Sabha member, will inaugurate the exhibition on Thursday (November 28). Mr. Ravindra Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, will be the Guest of Honour.

“The exhibition presents advances in interactive art through an exploration of the science, art and spirituality of Music, and its reflections in the Goddessimages across Asian cultures. It provides viewers an opportunity to enter into the world of Asian music through electronic installations, digital images and recordings of performances by maestros,” says Mr. Makkuni, who describes himself as a ‘tactile, interactive and computing designer’.

“Music is essential to the ritual of temples, whether the altar bell, chants or prayers of spiritual seekers or as a sacred precinct for performance. In South and Southeast Asia, the temple may be seen as a buzzing musical instrument,” points out the artist, an alumnus of IIT, Kharagpur and University of California Los Angeles (UCLA).

The exhibition presents both traditional and new instruments based on Indian Sitar, Burmese Saung Harp, Thai Xylophone, Korean Kayagum, Chinese Guzheng and Pipa, Vietnamese Dan Tranh, and Javanese & Balinese Gamelan, among others.

New instruments with embedded computation demonstrate interactions through gesture, touch, pull, movement and gaze. In addition, through responsive computing, people by their position, gesture and movements control musical events in the exhibition environment. For instance, there is a sculpture, Abstract Woman. Embedded in the waist of the sculpture is a representation of Sri Yantra, which, upon touch, plays back the 1000 names of Goddess Lalita.

“People spend so much time interacting with the dull computer, but we are trying to create a richer experience so that modern society still has culture in its life. By putting culture back onto your desktop, you get to interact with beautiful objects, and that helps you remember your inner God,” says Mr Makkuni, whose works have been displayed at leading museums and won top international awards for promoting culture, peace and environmental protection.

The project demonstrates a perfect synthesis of technology and culture, of modern and traditional, of celestial and mundane, of physical and virtual. Itshows that it is possible to develop culture-friendly technologies and how technology can become a vehicle for preserving cultural identity, not replacing it. 

“The exhibition is exquisite and enthralling. It shows a convergence of culture and computing in a very innovative manner,” said Dr Venu V, Director General, National Museum. “It is a fabulous show of art and culture as well as a research exploration into Asian musical traditions and ancient instruments through modern computing methods.”

The exhibition comprises several sections, showing Goddesses of Music and their Iconic Transformations; forms and sculptures suggestive of the scientific and mythological imagery of sound; and the compassionate Goddesses who listen to people’s prayers. There are sections on 

Goddess Sarasvati, the goddess of wisdom and music; Kinayi, the Angels of Music, from Burma; and The Compassionate figure of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara from Japan.  There is also a section on Breath, Voice and Healing, which explores the healing properties of singing and its relationship to breath.

A visual splendour, an aesthetic delight and sheer tech wizardry – the exhibition is an amalgam of all these attributes that define the work of the multimedia artist. As the director of New Delhi-based e design think tank, the Sacred World Research Laboratory, Mr. Makkuni is engaged in pioneering new applications in culturally rooted computing design.   

“I try to explore innovative ways of building bridges between techno and traditional cultures. I believe engagement with culture is a valuable process to spark off technological innovation. My works show that the wisdom of traditional communities can positively negate the homogenizing aesthetics of modern media technology and help inspire new forms of indigenous information access devices,” he says.

Overall, the project presents a compelling vision for indigenous design, the redesign of new economies centred on Innovation, Well Being and Compassion, he points out. 

The exhibition will be on display till 16 January 2014.

M D NICHE - Media Consultants

कला- मंगल की अगली प्रदर्शनी 14 से

          बिहार ललित कला अकादमी इस वर्ष से बिहार की चाक्षुस कला एवं कलाकारों के उत्थान के लिए एक नियमित रूप से चलने वाली कला गतिविधि के रूप में "कला- मंगल " की शुरुआत कि है जिसकी अगली प्रदर्शनी 14 नवम्बर से स्वयं कि कला दीर्घा ( बहुद्देश्यीय कला परिसर, फ्रेज़र रोड, पटना ) में करने जा रही है।  इसके तहत दो कला रूपों की प्रदर्शनी होगी एक तरफ वरिष्ठ छायाकारों की छायाकृति प्रदर्शित होगी साथ ही युवा मूर्तिकारों कि मूर्तिशिल्प का भी अवलोकन दर्शक कर पाएंगे।  19 नवम्बर  तक होने वाली प्रदर्शनी का उद्घाटन 14 नवम्बर को शाम 4 बजे किया जाएगा।

कला मंगल कि पिछली प्रदर्शनी, कलाकार सुमन मेहता 

          इसी गतिविधि के तहत पिछले दिनों वरिष्ठ चित्रकार श्री सुमन मेहता के चित्र तथा रेखाचित्रों की प्रदर्शनी का भी आयोजन किया गया था।

Subodh Gupta Business Standard

http://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/food-for-thought-113110100990_1.html