9-day ‘Art Residency’ begins at RCEMPA

A 9-day “Art Residency” began at Regional Centre of Excellence for Music and Performing Arts (RCEMPA), after a brief inaugural was held at the premises, Jotsoma on Tuesday.
Speaking at the inaugural, Youth Resources and Sports (YRS), secretary, Wezope Kenye, said art was an expression of being creative in one’s own skills through painting, drawing sculpture and even artifacts at the same time gives meaning and helps people understand the world.
He said art had played a huge role in the Naga Society as it was what help depict how “our” forefathers and ancestors had lived and how they celebrated through the figures of drawings depicting their attires and cultures.
Highlighting about the use and prominence of art, Kenye said the use of old portraits from the past in the form of textbooks and storybooks was one important way to preserve Naga’s ancient history.
He observed that using art as a medium to display beauty, creativity of a society to make it better and bring a sense of pleasure, express one’s truths and beliefs, portray various ideas, feelings and as display of triumph, love, happiness, sorrow and boredom was not a new thing.
He added that art also reflected cultural values and help to preserve the many different communities that made up the world and that each and every message behind art shows ideas that were relevant to the society.
He hoped that the “residency” would give artists the opportunity to live and work outside of their usual environments, providing them with time to reflect, research and produce work.
“Art Residency promotes any artist to share their skills with other fellow artists and being able to work and communicate to explore new and better ideas together,” Kenye said.
He wished the participants of the residency a productive time and they meet each other to work and interact.
Earlier, visiting artist and executive director of Art for Change Foundation, Isaac Gergan said he was excited to be in Nagaland and take part in the residency.
While thanking TaFMA for opening up the door to hold the residency, Gergan hoped that it would be fruitful for the participants and that the right synergy would be achieved during the duration of the same.
He also disclosed that they were keeping the doors open for students, youths or whoever wanted to come in and look at artists, the creative process and also to the exhibition which would be held at the end of the residency on the 10th day.
He stressed that the main focus of the residency was on the process and not the finished product.
He informed that there were 7 artists and 5 members from the foundation making it to a total of 12 participants for the residency.
Since it was a national residency, there were artists from different parts of the country including New Delhi, Kolkata, Assam, Ladakh and Nagaland, Gergan said.
Earlier, the inaugural was chaired by TaFMA project director, Dr Hovithal Sothu, welcome note was delivered by YRS additional secretary, Anthony Ngullie. A special number was presented by Kum Phangmei and YRS director, Akumla Chuba, proposed the vote of thanks.
The residency would culminate on August 10 with an exhibition and sale of the products created by the artists the next day.