From Our Correspondent
AGARTALA: Raphael Warjri, an artist from Meghalaya is visibly upset at the dwindling influence of traditional culture even at Northeast Contemporary Arts Fair, a common platform for promoting contemporary arts by way of paintings.
Though people’s response to the five-day fair is good here, it would have been much better had the traditional cultural progreamme been organized on the inaugural day in stead of classical song and dance, he said.
Where is the root-traditional Hajagiri dance, he asked while talking to The Shillong Times in his pavilion- Riti Adademy of Visual Art, Shillong at Children’s Park here on Saturday evening.
On being asked what has drive them to join the fair, the 50-year old artist said, they came here to promote indigenous idea by way of contemporary art not for economic benefit.
Giving full-scale praise on the quality of creations being displayed in the fair, Warjri said, “This is very high quality fair in comparison what we used to have in Shillong. The government might be taking initiatives to promote the cotemporary arts here”.
Artists from Jorhat Fine Arts Society, Assam want to exchange their views with people of the landlocked state Tripura.
“People queries are good here and we want to popularize contemporary arts for self employment of artists”, said Biswajit Baruah, executive member of Jorhat Fine Arts Society.
Lashing out at the Assam Government for lack of initiative to promote contemporary arts, Baruah pointed out the government in Assam has been spending more for sports than promoting art and culture.
“Socio-economic condition of artists could be better if the government gives minimum attention to the artists. The government could not even set up a full fledged Art Gallery to promote contemporary arts”, he said.
The Art Gallery at Rabindra Bhavan in Guwahati is not scientifically established and more so there is archive for preservation of creations, he adding that the government must come forward to upgrade facilities for arts and artists.
Mizoram Artists’ Society is upbeat as it has sold a painting amounting to Rs. 3500. “We have brought 21 paintings on different subjects and one has been sold at Rs. 3500 yesterday. We do hope paintings from Mizoram will have good business here”, said S Lalmama, treasurer of the society.
“This fair has given us a platform to showcase our creations on typical tribal cultural by way of paintings,” he added.