Art camps, ahoy!

Hot, sweltering summer months and the unpredictable monsoons — the Indian art fraternity prefers to go slow during this time. So while commercial work projects are relatively fewer, the need of artists to learn and experience something new is at its peak. Some time ago a group of 15 artists from Japan attended a camp in Kashmir. And in the next few months a whole lot of camps have been lined up — one more in Kashmir, one in Japur and two in Goa.

Gallery owner Vibhu Raj Kapoor, who is organising the camps in Goa, says, “Artists usually invest this time in learning more, experimenting with something new and trying out something different. The camps always work as a felicitator to do so.”

Artist Ajay De, who had been to Japan for a camp, says, “The experience was an enriching one. Japan has some of the best facilities and technology even when it comes to art infrastructure.”

In most camps the artists are expected to give the organisers about two or more artworks each. De adds, “When the camps started, the idea was to work with different artists. It is interesting to see each other’s works, interact, learn and know each other’s techniques. But things are changing now and more experience-based camps are receiving encouragement for an artist.”