TIRUPATI: All out efforts will be made to persuade Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to declare the traditional Kalamkari art as a State art, said TTD Chairman Bhumana Karunakara Reddy.
Participating as a chief guest at the inaugural session of the three-day workshop organized on the theme of Traditional Temple Art by the SV Traditional Sculpture Training Institute (SVITSA) in Tirupati, the chairman said that the TTD board will soon upgrade the two-year certificate course on Kalamkari into a four-year diploma course.
Stating that Kalamkari art was born about 30,000 years ago as a temple and bhajan hall architecture, the chairman said that TTD had revived this art into a teaching course 17 years ago. TTD would soon launch a campaign to produce idols of Sri Venkateswara to suit the devotional needs of every household in the country, he added.
Bhumana Karunakar Reddy said that the workshop should inspire the students of the sculpture institute to harness their skills and make them role model exponents of architecture and sculpture. Speaking on the occasion, JEO for Health and Education Sada Bhargavi said that the fine arts received patronization during Sri Karunakar Reddy’s regime with a new building and had also announced a Rs 1 lakh financial assistance to all students who completed the courses.“The Chairman had hiked prices of sculptures produced by students at the workshop. Since its inception so far 815 students of the institute have turned into sculptors and architects,” the JEO added.
Sculpture exhibition
The TTD Chairman also inaugurated an exhibition of sculptures which included temple art, statues, cement figurines, koyya (wood) folk statues, panchaloha idols, traditional architecture, etc. The artifacts made from waste, glass, pottery, and household articles made from jute were also put on display.TTD Board member Sri Yanadayya, DEO Bhaskar Reddy, prominent Stapathi Sri Santhana Krishnan, SVETA director Prashanti, and Institute principal Venkat Reddy were present.