The web site is being developed by founder and artists to give the visitor, an educative experience in Indian folk art of painting. Its focus is on traditional, rural and tribal art. I found this is the best way to protect, save and revive handicrafts that have either died out or exist in a stage of decay due to products coming out of the machine. Constant touch of volunteers with artisans would enable them to collect a variety of designs that would find a place in the website for view by one and all. An added feature is the associated myths and stories collected straight from artisans.
The site is the creation of Late Dr. Nitish Chandra Satyawadi and Dr. Sudha Satyawadi. Dr. NC Satyawadi though Economist had a great interest in Indian art and culture.His contribution is countless.
Sudha is an artist, researcher and author working for the last fifty years on ancient art and culture. Working on folk heritage of India.
Sudha holds a Masters in Art History, was an awardee of Junior Fellow, of the Indian Council for Historical research, Government of India, New Delhi (1986-87).
She did her PhD in 1991 and was awarded a Post-Doctoral Fellowship from I C H R for in 2010.
Recently . She has been awarded with a Senior Academic Fellowship by ICHR on “Folk Knowledge, in quest of Cultural Heritage of India”.
She has been placed on the files of Division of Arts, UNESCO, Paris, as a specialist of Intangible Cultural Heritage. She did a project on the comparative study of rock and folk art of India, Australia and South Africa and was a Visiting Scholar, Department of International Studies, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA (2002-04). She is an Awardee of Ranade Award in 2017 for her book, ‘Timeless Art of Ajanta’. She was the Settlor for Udayan Public Empowerment Trust – A Society of Folklore (Regd. Government of Delhi, in 2005) for upliftment of artisans.
Now preparing an encyclopaedia on folk and tribal arts of India- the cradle of Indian art, culture and civilisation.
This site’s focus is to provide researchers and artisans a platform. The art created by master craftsmen spread across villages who have helped its survival through ravages of time. Such folk arts besides being a visual delight, connect the present to ancient designs, myths and superstitions.
We welcome the contribution of visitors in enriching this site with their knowledge of local folk art. World over, rural areas are a repository of art and all can help preserve such art through this site. Paintings and crafts with associated myths and superstition, material and technique used and any other information, all are welcome. Volunteers from all over would serve as valuable resource centres as they have knowledge of rural art of their region.
Let all of us, from all over the globe, try and help preserve our ancient and traditional art. Once gone, it would be lost forever.
The Primary Mission Of This Experience is Three-Fold:
1) Create a repository of folk knowledge in the different fields of folk arts
2) For traditional creators of folk knowledge
3) Bring closer the creator, researchers and patrons of arts