OUR GRATITUDE TO...OUR GRATITUDE TO...

The familiy of late Shri TRP Mookiah for donating 27 paintings and 38 sculptures of the artist to our collection.

Deborah Thiagarajan for donating a shuttle, Warli painting, masks and tribal objects.

Premalatha Seshadri for her donation of an antique veena.

Nirmala Menon for a black and white photograph

Poompuhar for their donation of a Dathathreya icon

Nalini Radhakrishnan for a pair of para (ritual drums) and an antique ghindi (oil container)

Chithra Madhavan for donation of the book Journal of Indian History and Culture

Deborah Thiagarajan for donating old Tamil books and textile sample catalogue collections

Anne Morral for donating books on Embroidery

Seagull Books Private Limited for their donation of 2 copies of KG Subramanyan’s books.

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Crochet - purse/cell phone pouch ....................Kalamkari - block printing on stoles................

Tie and Dye - Bandhini on Duppatta .............

Block making & printing (print making) ........Batik work on a stole .....................................Batik work ......................................................

Cooking : Basic South/North Indian by Chandra Padmanabhan Jan 7th, 21st, 28th and Feb 4th Rs.800/ per class

.... 21st ........................... 1500

.... 14th & 15th ............... 2000

.... 21st............................ 1000

.....22nd .......................... 1000

WORKSHOPS FOR ADULTS DATE FEE

UPCOMING WORKSHOPS - TEXTILE FOCUS

DakshinaChitraMuttukadu, East Coast RoadTamilnadu 603118Tel: 2747 2603 / 2747 2783 www.dakshinachitra.net

DakshinaChitra is open daily from 10am to 6pm. Closed on Tuesday

DakshinaChitra is the project of Madras Craft Foundation

Design and Content : Rhoda Alex

If undelivered, please return to

Madras Craft FoundationG3 Madhuram Flats6 Urur Olcott Road

Besant NagarChennai - 600 090

Tel: 2491 8943/ 2446 2435Email: dakmcf@gmail.ocm

If you had the chance to be at DakshinaChitra during the last few weeks of 2014, you would have seen Stephen Eckerd at the centre guiding children with craft activities. He is a former coordinator of the ImaginAsia program, Smithsonian Freer and Sackler Galleries. He has been associated with DakshinaChitra for many years now and has been instrumental in kick-starting interesting activities and programs in our education department.

Given the time of the year, Stephen started to explore and understand Christmas decorations in Chennai by visiting a number of churches. The ubiquitous ‘angels’ caught his eye and so did the stained glass windows that are unique to church architecture. He quietly mentions that the stained glass technique came to Europe from the Middle East in the time of the crusades. Pulling the strings of a simple ‘angel ‘ puppet that he

has made for children, Stephen adds that angels or messengers from Gods is a concept found across many religions – apsaras (Hindu), malaikahs(Islam) and angels (Christianity).

So, while on the surface, the puppet angel or the stained glass motif seem

simple, the thought process behind each craft and activity is deep and informed. It is clear that through these activities, Stephen encourages the children to explore further into their interests and skills. Education for sure ! Thank you Stephen.

The last three months have been really busy for Potrarasan, inhouse Ceramicist at DakshinaChitra. Our fully equipped Ceramic centre has made it possible for him to conduct a number of workshops for students and enthusiasts. Not less than 120 participants, many from colleges such as Hindustan College of Engineering and Mohamed Sathak A J Academy Of Architecture participated in various workshops.

Seen above are the final year architecture students exploring and understanding Ceramics as part of the Interior Design course. Getting a first hand know how about the various aspects of Ceramics such as material, glaze, kilns, firing etc over a period of three weeks - these students guided by their faculty Jegadeesh and Portarasan came up with this interesting abstract panel featured on the cover. This gives them the knowledge and awareness about ceramics and how it can be used in architecture and design.

MAR 22 - 28 : SCULPTURE CAMP Young professional artists are to participate in a week long sculpture camp at the Ceramic Centre.

CERAMIC CENTRE UPDATES

.... 10th & 11th................ 1500

....24th ............................. 1000

WORKSHOPS FOR CHILDREN DATE FEE

Tie and Dye on T-shirt (8-14yrs).................

.... 31st ............................. 800

FEBFridge Magnet Making (8-14yrs).................using polymer clay

Block Printing on a stole (8-14yrs)............. ....1st .............................. 800

.... 7th & 8th ................... 1500

JAN

Our workshops offer an authentic craft experience. Master craftsperson and experts teach the craft in an ambience that is unmatched! To register please call Lakshmi, Education Co-ordinator at 9841777779. Transport to DakshinaChitra is available from our Besant Nagar Office

Kalamkariblock printing

Tie & Dye

Block making & PrintingCroche

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COME JOIN THE 3 MONTHCERTIFICATE COURSE ON

FOLK DANCES OF TAMILNADU.WEEKEND CLASSES ONLY.

Thappattam ◘Oyillattam ◘

Silambatttam ◘

NEWS AND EVENTS

JAN - MAR 2015NEWS AND EVENTS

JAN - MAR 2015

NOT JUSTANGELS!

Visting MBA students from the London Business School’s India Club are being treated to a short snappy session of Oyilattam by Adhi Vishnu of the Education department. Dec 2014. Do get in touch with Lakshmi at 9841777779 to try out folk dance sessions at DakshinaChitra.

a happy child with his puppet angel atDakshinaChitra

Rajasekar

Happy new year ! After a wonderful 2014 which was wrapped up with the vibrant festival of Himachal Pradesh - we continue to celebrate the season the entire month of January featuring folk dances of South India.

JAN 1 - 6 : BONALU from Andhra Pradesh A processional dance to appease the Goddess Mahakali

JAN 7 - 12 : GORAVARA KUNITHA from Karnataka is a ritualistic dance dedicated to the Lord Mailara Linga by his devotees

JAN 13 - 20 : PONGAL SPECIAL - Pongal, the harvest festival of Tamilnadu attracts huge numbers of visitors to DakshinaChitra because of the authentic flavour of celebration and presentation of popular folk dances associated with it namely - Mayillattam, Karagam, Poikal Kudhiraiattam. Witness the Tamilnadu street transform into a live village zone at DakshinaChitra.

JAN 17 & 18: STREET FOOD & GARDEN FESTIVAL by the Friends of DakshinaChitra.

JAN 21 -26 : OTTAN THULLAL from Kerala, some-times known as the poor mans kathakali will be performed.

JAN 28 - FEB 1 : KOLATTAM, THAPPATTTAM ... of Tamilnadu by Mohanam Cultural Centre, Pondichery.

GREETINGS FROM DakshinaChitra

HAPPENINGS AND HOPES

Sharath Nambiar, Chief Operating Officer at DakshinaChitra has set the ball rolling on eco-friendly initiatives at the centre.

HERBAL GARDEN: A patch of ground behind the Sattanur heritage house in the Tamilnadu section of DakshinaChitra is being put to good use now. Nearly 25 different species of herbs with medicinal value have found root and are slowly on their way to becoming young plants. Sharath who is known for his go-green lifestyle procured many of the herbs and seeds from ITWWS - Irula Tribal Women Welfare Society. Their innate knowledge of the various herbs from the forests of Tamilnadu is awe-inspiring he says.

PLASTIC FREE ZONE: DakshinaChitra has given itself the target of becoming a plastic-free zone by the end of 2015. The insensitivity of people and the amount of garbage generated even inside of a conservation centre such as DakshinaChitra is alarming. Though continous efforts have been taking place right from the beginnng in terms of generating compost, recycling and segregating waste, the rise in consumption of plastics through the years now calls for stringent action. This will be achieved in a phased manner and hopefully a suitable alternative to PET bottles and aerated soft drinks will be found.

RENOVATED PLAY AREA: The play area is now completely renovated and it has been decided to allow children below the age of 10years to use the same. Oh yes! there is no plastic used in our play area !!

TOUCHED BY DAKSHINACHITRA

She was introduced first to the heritage houses of DakshinaChitra through an excursion organised by her school. “I thought it was going to be yet another boring day the school had planned for us, but only after I got there did I realize that

DakshinaChitra was going to influence my decision on who I wanted to become” says Anusree Bammanchery faculty of Architecture in Meenakshi college of Engineering, Chennai.

Fascinated with DakshinaChitra and the glimpse it gave her into the world of Architecture, she chose to pursue her studies in the same and visited DakshinaChitra again as part of a lesson in sketching. And in her 4th year of study she chose to intern with none other than Benny Kuriakose, the architect who is responsible for the re-construction of the many heritage houses at DakshinaChitra. She vividly recalls his tour of DakshinaChitra and how he explained the ‘why’ of many features found in each house.

‘My learning continues as faculty,’ she confesses as she brought her students to the centre and introduced them to vernacular architecture! Anusree is also sure that when she becomes a bride, her preferred spot for a photoshoot would be DakshinaChitra ! “ It is not about the buildings, trees or ambience, it is about an endearing emotion and how it makes you feel. This place is paradise,” she declares.

We wish Anusree all the very best and we thank her for sharing her story.

FEB 14 & 15 : D A M FEST - DakshinaChitra is happy to host this unique festival of creativity in collaboration with NIFT, Chennai.

MAR 7 -15: UGADI : is the new year celebration of Karnataka & Andhra - at DakshinaChitra enjoy a week of shadow puppet performances by D Ramana and troupe. There will be a display and sale of puppets too !

MAR @ 1-7 : As part of the Festival of Auroville (Mar 1 - 16) in Chennai, a memorial lecture for Ajit Koujalgi along with an exhibition will be presented in the first week of March (date to be confirmed). Kojualgi is known for his contribution to conservation of heritage buildings in South India.

MAR 1 - 31: EXHIBITIONSIDHPUR - ARCHITECTURE WITHOUT FRONTIERS The DakshinaChitra incubator program Thinai’s partici-pant Urban Design Collective presents an exhibition on Sidhpur, a sleepy little town in Northern Gujarat. It commemorates the heritage houses of the Dawoodi Bohra community. If ever there was a melting pot of ideas then this was it - Western Christian features, built by local Hindu craftsmen for Shia Muslim clients. A syncretic response to answer the needs of a particular life style and of local climatic conditions. Do mark your diary and visit.

URBAN CITY PROJECT: Thinai has also flagged off the Urban City Project along with Supportive Cities in December. We welcome the 16 members who have been selected for this six month endeavour. Wishing you the best.

Art Beat

1 JAN - 30 JAN: Paintings by G Raman

5 FEB - 28 FEB Paintings by RAVEE on Temples of South India

MARCH Sidhpur Exhibition Thinai and UDC@

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Facade of heritage houses in a Sidhpur street.

Saraswathi

20 DEC - 20 JAN Form and Meaning in a Hindu Temple by the Arts Managmentstudents of DakshinaChitra. Formore details on the course please visit www.mcfiam.org

23 JAN - 28 FEBBodhisattuva :Zen Buddhistdrawings by Bodhiselvam

4 MAR - 30 MARPaintings by Saraswathi@

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JAN-MAR: MADRAS @ AMBUR GALLERYa photography exhibition by Aniruddh Ganapathy

DAKSHINACHITRAVIRUDHU 2014MARCH 14 @ 4.30 pm

Sri Karnati Lakshmi Narasaiah is popular in the fields of theatre and folk arts. He is a master promoter of many dying folk art forms like Burrakatha, Gollasuddulu, Jamukula Katha,Tappetagullu,Kolatam, Oggukatha etc. He has made his mark as a great actor, director and presentator. A freedom fighter of great spirits, he put up street plays against the dictatorial role of Nizam. Influenced by Mahatma Gandhi, he lives a simple life cherishing Gandhian values. He started Andhra Nataka Kala Samithi in 1965 which renders great service to the cause of arts.

Join us on March 14th at DakshinaChitra as we felicitate this veteran with the award.

DKC ARTIST FELLOWSHIP

Our Artist fellow, Jaret Vadera has spent more than three months in DakshinaChitra and has had the chance to interact with artisans, staff and public to the centre. On October 15th, his talk ‘Of Butterflies, Dead Pixels and Other Ideas’ at the Indian Institute of Technology was engaging and well received by a set of students. On

November 3rd, he was part of a panel discussion titled, ‘Flatland: This World/ Other Worlds hosted at the Asian

College of Journalism in collaboration with the US Consulate General, Chennai. To know more please follow

the DKC Fellowship Program page on Facebook.

CONSERVATION NEWSWe welcome expert conservationist Tody Caesar to DakshinaChitra again in 2015. She will be at the centre for two months working with the Conservation Department, imparting training to the staff.

STREET FOOD FESTIVAL & GARDEN SHOW

STREET FOOD FESTIVAL & GARDEN SHOW

STREET FOOD FESTIVALUpmapesarattu, Panniyaram

Burma noodles, Kappa with fish curry, Sannas(Goan idlis) & gravy, Dum Biriyani

Live Dosai kadai and pazha kadai !kuchi kulfi, thengai mangai sundal

chukku caapi, ginger tea, goli soda, javvu muttai and more !!!

GARDEN SHOWPetunias, Gerberas, Adeniums , Bonsais of Casuarinas, Ficus and Oh orchids !Rare coloured bougainvilleasminiature landscape garden, and Terrariums (plants in a bottle) too ! Panchakaavya, organic manure and pesticidesRare plant seeds to set you growing !!

A ONE OF A KIND EVENT - 17 & 18 JANUARYPROUDLY PRESENTED BY

THE FRIENDS OF DASHINACHITRA