Lalit Kala Chairman bats for uniform curriculum across art schools

Shedding light on the poor condition of the country's art schools, Lalit Kala Akademi Chairman Uttam Pacharne said the institution will soon propose to the government to implement a uniform curriculum to bring smaller schools at par with the established ones.

"Provision for government resources and staff needs some uniformity. Many art schools are heavily understaffed and many of them don't have enough infrastructural facilities," Pacharne told IANS over telephone.

A sculptor himself, he said that students cannot refine their art if they are not taught basics at the initial level.

Explaining that the syllabi of art schools have unnecessary variety, Pacharne said: "A unique curriculum nationwide must be implemented, with some scope of localization of the syllabus."

He was speaking ahead of the 64th Foundation Day of the Lalit Kala Akademi, established on August 5, 1954 to promote visual arts and build a national cultural identity in tandem with the Sahitya Akademi and Sangeet Natak Akademi.

Upholding past traditions, Pacharne said the genius of Indian art lies in the form, colours and originality of tribal art, and in our "obsession with modernity, we are unable to separate our values with those of the western artists".

To give greater space to artists for exhibiting tribal art, the premier art institute will host an event -- Triennale -- showcasing the current trends and happenings in contemporary art movement across the world, in December.

With the multi-disciplinary Triennale also featuring sculptures, installations, photographic material and new media, among others, Pacharne hopes to familiarize non-Indian artists with the totality of Indian art and culture.

"Lalit Kala Akademi has always promoted young artists through studio facilities, scholarships, grants, and giving them national and international platforms. The Triennale is our next big step in continuing to do so," he said.

(Siddhi Jain can be contacted at siddhi.j@ians.in)

--IANS

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