Traditional painters having expertise in their respective domains from the hinterland have gathered in Kadapa with the common goal of resuscitating the endangered art forms.
The Yogi Vemana University’s Department of Fine Arts, in association with the South Central Zone Cultural Centre (Ministry of Culture), is organising a seven-day national workshop on ’traditional and tribal painting’ as part of the ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. Traditional and tribal painting forms representing various regions of the country such as Kalamkari (Andhra Pradesh), Soura (Odisha), Cherial (Telangana), Madhubani (Bihar) and Warli (Maharashtra) are the subjects of discussion at this workshop, where the participating students of fine arts were getting the opportunity to interact with the artists hailing from traditional families practising the art for several decades. A. Dhananjaya Rao, Kalamkari artist from Srikakulam, calls the workshop the much-needed intervention to link the conventional painters and the would-be professionals. “The latter will have to carry on the mantle and hence it is essential to know the nuances of the art form.” Savara Raju, a Soura artist from north coastal Andhra and his Odia counterpart Jogi Sabaro explained to the students that the tribal painting form is highly revered. The sacred portions of a household are painted with triangle-shaped Soura motifs ahead of the mango season in March-April. Participants also gathered around Warli expert Minakshi Vasudev and Madhubani painter Vijaykumar Jha for tips. Event convener K. Mrityunjaya Rao explained that the fusion of ideas generated at the workshop would help in the propagation of the art forms.
