Fourth ASNA Clay Triennial: 60 ceramists from across the world expected to attend

The exhibition will start on January 11 and continue till the end of the month.

KARACHI:

The Fourth ASNA Clay Triennial, which is scheduled to start from January 11, will bring together 60 ceramists from 16 countries.

The event comprises an exhibition, a seminar, a two-day dialogue with a panel of ceramists and a number of workshops. It will also include a two-day ‘Khumbar Mela’, in which the works of 30 craft potters from all over Pakistan will be up for sale. The exhibition, titled ‘Light and Lightness’, will begin on January 11 at VM Art Gallery in Rangoonwala Community Centre, Dhoraji, with the key-note address delivered by Swiss ceramist Claude Presset.

Renowned ceramists, including Elizabeth La Retief from France, John Skognes from Norway, Sonia Dhingra from India and Gopal Das Sherestha from Nepal, are expected to attend. Many of these artists have played an instrumental role in promoting ceramics as an art form in their countries.



The event is being held by ASNA, an organisation formed in 1997 by artist Mehr Afroz, art critic Niilofur Farrukh and designer Shanaz Siddiq, to explore the similitarities between contemporary art and crafts. They have held many successful programmes in Pakistan as well as abroad.

The ASNA Clay Triennial, which has been organised since 2000, is well attended and has played an important role in promoting the cultural side of Pakistan. It is organised on a non-commercial basis through donations from the community and with the help of volunteers. ASNA also has an outreach programme to engage students in arts activities and to introduce them to local artists through workshops.

The clay triennial is the biggest art event to be held in Pakistan and will continue till January 31 between 10:30 am to 7pm.

Event schedule

‘Light and Lightness’ - an exhibition of ceramics

Dates: January 11 to January 31

Venue: VM Art Gallery, Rangoonwala Community Centre, Dhoraji

Timings: 10:30am to 7pm

International seminar - Research on contemporary art practice and its historical continuum

Artists, scholars and critics from Australian, Turkey, Pakistan, India, Norway, Switzerland will present papers.

Dates: January 12 and January 13

Time: 9:45am to 4:30pm daily

Venue: Rangoonwala Community Centre

Kumbhar Mela

Meet craft potters from across Pakistan, watch their demonstrations and take the opportunity to buy their work

Date: January 26 to January 28

Time: 3pm to 6pm (first day) and then 10:30am to 5:30pm

Venue: Courtyard of the Rangoonwala Community Centre

Workshops:

Paperclay by Elizabeth de Retif (France)

Naked Raku by Sirin Kocak (Turkey)

Lustre demonstration by Abbas Akbari (Iran)

Experimental Raku by Gopal Kalapremi Sherestha (Nepal)

For more information, contact [e-mail]

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6^th, 2013.