{"id":56224,"date":"2025-09-24T11:27:01","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T05:57:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/2025\/09\/24\/odisha-craft-odyssey-to-host-second-open-studio-showcasing-groundbreaking-research-and-a-new-vision-for-indigenous-craft\/"},"modified":"2025-09-24T11:27:01","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T05:57:01","slug":"odisha-craft-odyssey-to-host-second-open-studio-showcasing-groundbreaking-research-and-a-new-vision-for-indigenous-craft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/2025\/09\/24\/odisha-craft-odyssey-to-host-second-open-studio-showcasing-groundbreaking-research-and-a-new-vision-for-indigenous-craft\/","title":{"rendered":"Odisha Craft Odyssey to Host Second Open Studio, Showcasing Groundbreaking Research and a New Vision for Indigenous Craft"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], September 24:\u00a0<\/strong> The city is going to witness an unusual exhibition on craft practices through the efforts of Odisha Craft Odyssey (OCO), a pioneering cultural initiative by the MGM Foundation and the Bhubaneswar Experimental Art and Design Studio (BEADS). OCO is set to unveil its second research exhibition, titled \u2018The Popular Pipli: Threads of Memory, Networks of Power\u2019, curated by Sibdas Sengupta at the Lalit Kala Akademi, Bhubaneswar, on the 21st of September, 2025, from 5 pm onwards. Unlike many art and craft exhibitions, OCO\u2019s exhibitions visualise the complex research survey that was conducted in collaboration with artists, researchers and the artisans. This edition marks a new chapter in the preservation and revitalisation of Odisha\u2019s living heritage. OCO\u2019s second landmark event serves as the public culmination of the 2025 residency, which focused on the vibrant Appliqu\u00e9 craft of Pipli.<\/p>\n

The open studio is a direct outcome of OCO\u2019s unique methodology, which prioritises ethnographic research and cross-disciplinary collaboration to challenge the traditional hierarchies between fine arts and crafts. The program, curated by Sibdas Sengupta, embedded three contemporary practitioners\u2014Raj Maurya, Madhulika S Naidu, and Rhea Moras\u2014within the Pipli artisan community. Madhulika S. Naidu traces the historical evolution of Pipli appliqu\u00e9 through motifs, techniques, and social hierarchies, culminating in an installation of co-existing craft epistemologies. Rhea Moras examines stitching techniques as embodied knowledge, foregrounding women\u2019s voices and collective authorship through participatory projects and material explorations. Raj Maurya documents labour networks in Pipli appliqu\u00e9 using archival methods and cyanotype to reflect on memory, absence, and the repetitive nature of craft-making. During their residency, they engaged in a meticulous process to \u201cunravel the making\u201d of the craft, documenting its intricate techniques and cultural significance through comprehensive field notes and collaborative projects. This research-based approach elevates the craft from a mere artefact to a dynamic field of study, providing new avenues for artistic expression and academic discourse.<\/p>\n

\"Craft\"<\/p>\n

The importance of OCO\u2019s work extends far beyond its individual residencies. It is a long-term initiative dedicated to developing a new body of knowledge about Odisha\u2019s craft heritage, ensuring its sustainable future. This vision is a multi-faceted endeavour that includes the creation of a comprehensive encyclopaedic website, which will serve as a living archive for researchers and cultural practitioners worldwide. As Siddhartha Mohanty, Member of Advisory Board, OCO, states, the knowledge through OCO research is also designed to advocate for craftspeople and influence supportive policies. Through the issuance of research grants, OCO supports in-depth studies of craft clusters and an annual conference to disseminate these findings.<\/p>\n

By meticulously documenting these traditions and creating a robust digital repository, OCO is proactively safeguarding cultural heritage that is often passed down orally and is vulnerable to being lost. As the curator, Sibdas Sengupta states, \u2018The exhibition, as a whole, challenges the romanticised image of Pipli appliqu\u00e9, revealing the politics of its popularity and proposing counter-narratives to its celebrated identity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The second research will provide a tangible glimpse into the relevance of these ancient traditions in a modern context. It will showcase the collaborative projects that emerged from the Pipli residency, demonstrating how traditional craftsmanship can be a foundation for contemporary artistic innovation. This effort aligns with a wider global movement to activate the living heritage for a sustainable future, as recently highlighted in the G20 CWG exhibition, \u2018Sustain: The Craft Idiom\u2019. As Sandeep Hota, Member, Advisory Board, OCO, says,\u201d It is a privilege to be part of the Odisha Craft Odyssey as it deepens critical engagement with living craft traditions. The residency and fellowship not only document and preserve artisanal practices but also foreground the voices, knowledge systems, and evolving realities of the makers themselves. By creating spaces for dialogue between researchers, artisans, and contemporary practitioners, this initiative ensures that craft is recognised not as a static tradition, but as a dynamic and vital expression of cultural imagination in Odisha and beyond. \u201c<\/p>\n

\"Craft\"<\/p>\n

Premjish Achari, the visionary behind the project, encapsulates its core mission: \u201cThis project is about more than preservation; it\u2019s about innovation and creating a sustainable future for these crafts. This exhibition, curated by Sibdas Sengupta, serves as the public culmination of a rigorous, research-based residency program dedicated to the vibrant Appliqu\u00e9 craft of Pipli. By highlighting the work, documentation, and collaborations from this residency, the second research exhibition serves as a testament to OCO\u2019s foundational commitment to blurring the lines between art and craft, as well as between tradition and innovation. It marks a new chapter in a long-term commitment to revitalising and reimagining Odisha\u2019s invaluable cultural heritage.\u201d<\/p>\n

The open studio is a powerful invitation to witness the outcomes of this groundbreaking work and to observe a model where tradition and innovation can mutually enrich each other, securing the relevance and economic viability of Odisha\u2019s invaluable cultural wealth for future generations.<\/p>\n

About Odisha Craft Odyssey<\/h4>\n

The Odisha Craft Odyssey (OCO) is a collaborative program between the MGM Foundation and BEADS (Bhubaneswar Experimental Art and Design Studio) that seeks to create an inclusive cultural platform for highlighting the craft practices of Odisha. It aims to challenge the conventional hierarchies between fine arts and crafts by integrating traditional practices into contemporary artistic and academic contexts.<\/p>\n

If you have any objection to this press release content, kindly contact pr.error.rectification@gmail.com to notify us. We will respond and rectify the situation in the next 24 hours.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], September 24:\u00a0 The city is going to witness an unusual exhibition on craft practices through<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":56225,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[575],"class_list":["post-56224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56224"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56224\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prevalentindia.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}