Designer’s take
Interview with Craft and Community Development Foundation designer Anmol Yadav
Anmol Yadav, CCDF’s designer at work
Craft and Community Development Foundation’s initiative The Gondwana Art Project’s mission, at its core, is to create a platform for tribal artists to present their work and their perspectives demonstrating their craftsmanship and creativity, introducing new methods and techniques that express both traditional and contemporary imagery and values.
All artists involved in The Gondwana Art project are upskilled and helped, under consultation and guidance of the CCDF designer Anmol Yadav. The goal of this project is to ensure that the artworks are unique pieces of tribal art incorporating design elements keeping in mind a wide range of global audiences. During the project, the artisans get an assured stipend and they are allowed to freely express their skills and experiment with new techniques, design and colour palette, while keeping intact the authenticity of the art. The narratives focus on how the subject is created and detail the cultural ethos of the paintings.
To understand the process, the work that undergoes and the designer’s perspective, we spoke to Anmol Yadav, CCDF’s first designer.
Tell us about yourself briefly and how you and CCDF came together initially
It has been an absolute delight writing to you, thank you for your valuable time and confidence in CCDF and its mission to upskill the artisans of India. For your question,
I would like to introduce myself as an art enthusiast. I am a multi-disciplinary designer, creative facilitator, who likes to view the world through a creative lens. While studying Design at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Delhi, I began my creative journey in dynamic work environments where I explored & developed an understanding of art and experience in government, private and non-profit organizations. I am inspired by the stories, culture, and experiences of the artisans which led to contributing my best self to engage with Craft and Community Development Foundation (CCDF) starting from November 2019, where I was introduced to The Gondwana Art project which focuses on upskilling tribal artisans from the Gondwana Region i.e Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, practising Gond, Warli and Bhil art.
With CCDF and working alongside artisans whose artworks evolved through generations, why did it seem important to help upskill them?
'Why' is a very important term, why upskill the artisans whose artworks and paintings have been evolved through generations? The answer to this question is the journey of The Gondwana Art Project. The need to evolve and grow is very important not only for us but also for the tribal artisans of India. With the growing pace of the art industry, the Commercial & Contemporary Art world is communicating the stories of today in various evolved formats. Tribal arts on the other end also need to evolve and present their storytelling in unique ways. The journey of the project opens the door to a wide range of global audiences to look at tribal arts which are created uniquely incorporating different design elements, colour theories to introduce visual concepts in a new way that interests the global audience.
Were you approached by CCDF to be a part of The Gondwana Art Project or was it vice versa?
Yes, I was approached by team CCDF to be a part of the Gondwana Art Project.
As an artist and/or designer, how was the ‘process’ an experience for you, did you have to learn or unlearn anything to be able to help the artisans better?
The journey of The Gondwana Art Project has been a great learning as well as an unlearning experience for me. I always believe in contributing my best self to engage
and build relationships with the artisans to produce unique artworks also introducing them to a world of design and colours and a lot more. It has been a combination of many things. To sum it up, it is a different process for each artisan, understanding them and their psychology has helped me to initiate a different working process for each of them. We have done a lot of trials & errors, failed a lot, and learned a lot, there is no fixed methodology to achieve the goals that we set in our working process. The entire process has been very intuitive to me while working continuously, learning and unlearning different things to help the artisans.
Can you give us an insight on how you would approach helping upskill the artisans? “...under consultation and guidance of the CCDF designer Anmol Yadav.” Could you amplify this process for us?
The answer in the previous question can highlight the approach of helping upskill the artisan. The process is again an amalgamation of many things put together. It is a different working process for each one of them. To elaborate the process, in the initial stage we discuss and research the stories/concept that we want to pursue. After we finalize the story, the artisan then creates rough sketches in his/her style to compose the visual structure of the painting. Along with composition we introduce colour palettes and help the artisan to create and achieve different shades of colours that are to be used in the artwork. Visualizing the painting we discuss and choose the patterns, details, and highlights which can balance the composition and bring out the elements of the story in a unique way. Step by step we follow the process which gives the artisan a room to experiment with different elements involved in a painting, it introduces a new perspective in their approach of storytelling.
Folk & tribal art says so much about belonging, community and connection. What role did the pandemic play in creating a solution that has helped create a buzz about the folk & tribal artists in the contemporary Indian (or world) art scene?
Folk & tribal art form has been a medium for the tribal artisans to present their stories and thoughts in unique ways. It portrays their emotions of belongingness, community, and connection as you mentioned reflecting their inner world in their unique style of painting an artwork. The pandemic has slowed the pace of the fast-moving world to stop, look and observe the nature of life as it is. It has connected us to look within and reflect on our roots, heritage, stories, and our culture making us realize the meaning of life. The pandemic has thrown a light on the lives of folk & tribal artists of India and has inspired the audience to connect, help and support the artisan communities in rough times.
As the pandemic ebbs and flows, what hardships do the artisans of the country continue to face and how much could you as a consultant designer help curb?
The continuity of financial support has been majorly affected by the pandemic. As the market, galleries and shops have shut during the pandemic and lockdown scenario, all the major works for the artisans stopped, affecting their finances adversely also taking a toll on their emotional and mental wellbeing. As a consultant designer facilitating artisans with the team CCDF, it becomes a responsibility to stand and support the artisans during the crisis. Knowing the circumstances we keep getting inspired by new ideas, motivating and creating artworks to continue our journey forward. We believe that this time shall also pass and we have new avenues to look forward and grow in the process.
Why is it so important to have folk arts spoken about especially now when practically all of the art world has moved to the digital space?
Speaking about Folk Art is important not only to sustain the livelihoods of the tribal artisans but also to celebrate, preserve and provide opportunities to our roots and build connections with these tribal communities. It is important to talk and elevate these artforms to introduce the cultures and traditions to the current and upcoming generations to bridge the gap and connect with the artforms at their grassroots.
Finally, tell us, are you still involved with working with folk & tribal artisans in any manner and what will you suggest young contemporary artists on, when it comes to folk & tribal arts.
Currently, I'm not working with tribal artisans, but I am excited for upcoming opportunities in the future to work with the communities and create amazing artworks/products. For young contemporary artists and designers, I will suggest they explore and experience the tribal artforms because there is so much to learn, get inspired, and celebrate the unique cultures and traditions we have in our country. Ask oneself how can we incorporate the tribal art forms in the current world scenario which can help them to sustain and also provide a platform to express traditional and contemporary imagery and values.