7th December 1997

Is this the nemesis of creativity?

By a Special Correspondent

The exquisite creations of Asia are an eter nal tribute to the magnificence of human creativity. In this context the Sri Lankan craftsmen have held their own by any international standards.

I visited the Crafts exhibition organized by the National Crafts Council of Sri Lanka which was held at the Art Gallery from October 24 to 27 . My first reaction was that of horror. Artefacts were displayed in only one wing of the Art Gallery. The other wing was devoted to the exhibition of sweetmeats. Pray, what are sweetmeats during a Handicrafts exhibition? I consider this a downright insult to our national craftsmen. The items of sweetmeats on display were kavum, kokis, athiraha, mung kavum, kalu dodol, muscat etc. Also on display were wadai, iddli, bananas, king coconuts etc.

The decor and display had been done by amateurs. A large lace teapoy cover was hanging on one pin. There were soft toys which do not come within the ambit of the definition of handicrafts. Batiks, which are out of vogue now, except for mens' sarongs, were not of exhibition quality and should have been rejected at District level.

A craftsman whom I spoke to told me his exhibit won the first prize but a senior official of the National Crafts Council interfered with the decision of the judges and another craftsman's exhibit which was inferior and not even original was subsequently awarded the prize. Two judges had walked off after this incident. Some of the better pieces had the tag "SOLD" even before Minister Dodangoda officially opened the exhibition. Who are those privileged few who get a preview of an exhibition?

The exhibition had two excellent pieces (1) Mastercrafts person Mrs W. M. Boteju's 3 ft. tall clay pot with carvings. This won the 1st prize in the clay section. (2) A wood carving by a young craftsman from Galle which won the 1st prize in the wood section. This young man is the son of a master-craftsman G. Upali from Karandeniya.

There was no catalogue for this exhibition. A catalogue is a sine qua non for any exhibition. I suppose the lack of a catalogue was because there were so few items at the exhibition that it was an embarrasment even for the officials of the National Crafts Council to print a skimpy booklet.

Is this the nemesis of creativity?

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