Mithila Yain Art Gallery at Thamel hosted a festival of colors rightly called “Rang Utsav” from November 9 to 12, 2019. It was an international art exhibition of paintings, rangolis (a traditional Indian art form, made using colored powder or sand to decorate the courtyard or the floors) and crafts of Nepali and Indian artists.
The exhibition featured four Nepali artists and 22 Indian artists, out of which three were rangoli artists. Kiran Manandhar, renowned artist and the Chancellor of Nepal Academy of Fine Arts, was the chief guest of the program. The event was a perfect blend of colors, talent, hard work, excitement, and acknowledgment. Various artists, students, tourists, passersby, and all the lovers of art came together to join the program. Rang Utsav was a unique idea of expressing art.
In the Rang Utsav:
Right at the entrance of the gallery, a rangoli that spelled “Rang Utsav” welcomed visitors. On the inside, the walls proudly presented the magnificent paintings of the participating artists. The main highlight of the event was the three big rangolis. One of them portrayed colorful designs of Goddess Durga, another of Lord Ram, and of a bride.
Photo: Smriti Thapa
The rangoli section was the most crowded one. It was difficult to determine, at plain sight, that the drawings that were lying on the ground were actually rangolis. The visitors easily confused them with the likes of posters or flex boards. The Indian artists were extremely pleased with the interaction and warm response that they received.
People were observing and lauding the fine details and textures of the work while speculating how such glorious art was possible. One of the tourists, who visited the gallery, wasn’t convinced that it was powdered colors. Still doubtful, he asked for permission to verify it. And upon touching the edge, he was astonished to see that it really was created with powdered colors.
Mithila Yain Gallery‘s curator Shyam Sundar Yadav says, “One might have gone to hundreds of art exhibitions, but this exhibition is the first kind to happen in Nepal. Instead of drawing with regular colors, we have used colored powders of marble to create art.”
Photo: Smriti Thapa
To further appreciate the awe-inspiring rangolis, there was a competition held between the three. Chief guest Manandhar awarded the rangoli of a bride as the winner. He won a trophy and a certificate as an award.
Curator says:
Yadav shared that this event was also organized with the aim of promoting Visit Nepal Year 2020. He thought of doing his share of promotion for Visit Nepal Year 2020. Hence, came up with the idea of inviting International artists to our country.
Photo: Smriti Thapa
He said that at this time Nepal needs a lot of international exposure so, it is crucial that we bring as many international visitors as we can. Furthermore, in the upcoming months, I am calling out more artists from India and Bangladesh.
Impressed with the curious and delighted eyes of the visitors, Yadav shared, “The beauty of the rangoli art is that there is no place for mistakes. You cannot use an eraser or anything to correct it as in the paintings. One needs to do it with full confidence. It took at least eight hours for each artist to complete these rangolis. The very thought of cleaning all this art tomorrow morning worries me. However, I am happy in my heart that Nepali, as well as the international audience, got to witness rangoli art exhibition which was new to them.”
Moreover, he added, we need to encourage such international programs more as there is an exchange of knowledge, ideas and culture among the participants. It gives you recognition to our Nepali artists as well.
Mithila Yain Gallery holds art exhibitions on a regular basis. Next exhibition, the “Beauty of colors” is starting from November 25 till 30.
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