Art and Craft in the Indian Diaspora

INVITATION to join us THIS SUNDAY for the 179th weekly ICC ZOOM Public Meeting

Indian Art and Craft are often marginal, marginalised or made invisible altogether at exhibitions, fairs, markets, museums and art galleries in the Indian Diaspora. One glaring example of this is the Art and Craft display twice a year at CARIFESTA, the Caribbean Festival of Arts, an international so-called multicultural event in the region. Even when the roving festival is held in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana or Suriname where Asian Indians constitute the majority ethnic group, Indo-Caribbean artistic craftsmanship is practically absent. The Art and Craft Exhibitions in CARIFESTA are dominated by miniature Carnival and African dolls, tie-dye fabric, glass bead necklaces, earrings, bracelets, handbags, ceramics jars, teacups, calabash pots, toy tops, cutting boards, shak-shak, etc. It is in this creative space that discrimination against Indo-Caribbean culture becomes blatant and obscene.

There are few or no displays of local Indian art and craft items such as mehndi, rangoli, crepe paper cutting, clay deya and pots, cokeyeh brooms, chulha [fire side], mortars and pestles, mowree [bride’s headpieces], phooknee [blowpipes], daal ghotni [swizzle sticks] dabla [wooden ladle], peerhaa [small low benches], sil and lorha [grinding stones], dhantal [metallic percussion instruments], tassa and dholak [drums], miniature windmills, etc. These spaces of ethnic inequalities must be examined critically to repair this form of institutional discrimination. For further reading, see https://www.caribbeanlife.com/indian-culture-carifesta-unc-pp-pnm/.

Please join us THIS SUNDAY for the 179th weekly ICC ZOOM Public Meeting, Sunday October 29th 2023 at (1.00 p.m. Belize), (3.00 p.m. New York/Eastern time), (3.00 p.m. Trinidad/ Atlantic time), (3.00 p.m. Guyana), (4.00 p.m. Suriname), (8.00 p.m. England), (9.00 p.m. South Africa), (11.00 p.m. Mauritius), (Mon 12.30 a.m., India), (Mon 7.00 a.m. Fiji).

TOPIC: Art and Craft in the Indian Diaspora

SPEAKERS:

  • VISHAJA BOEDJAWAN – Skilled in lippan – a traditional Indian mural and relief art form originating in Gujarat in India. She uses clay and mirrors to create colourful designs depicting nature, animals and geometric patterns in Suriname.
  • ANNALEE BALSINGH – Part-time mehndi/henna artist specialised in the application of intricate and decorative henna designs on the skin, typically on the hands and feet, commonly done for cultural and celebratory events.
  • DONNY’S POTTERY (VIDEO) – The family in Trinidad has continued the tradition of making hand-crafted clay pots for over four generations. They create clay deyas, candle holders, vases, goblets, orchid pots and kalsas.
  • KAJAL MADHO – A practicing visual artist, sculptor, business owner and teacher with a B.A. in Visual Arts from UWI for which she received the M.P. Alladin Award. She focuses on creating eco-friendly murti deities with unique forms.
  • SIEUPERSAD MOTILAL – Maker of dholaks and tassa drums for the past 25 years in Trinidad, and repairer of many types of Indian instruments. Music teacher at Shiva Boys’ Hindu College pursuing a BA in Music at UWI.

Followed by Q&A

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