KATHMANDU
With the aims of promoting Nepal as an art destination and supporting children battling cancer, a mega art festival began on Thursday, to be followed by an exhibition and sale.
The Museum of Nepali Art (MoNA)’s First Annual Art Festival is an effort to bring Nepali art and artists to the limelight while serving a charitable cause. Thirty-three Nepali artists have come together for a day-long “live art congregation” at Kathmandu Guest House, Thamel.
Rastriya Swatantra Party: A Dwindling Hope
The event included creation of live art by some of Nepal’s renowned artists, along with various promotional activities such as live music, art supplies stand, food and drink stall, etc. The live artwork created will then be available for purchase by the public. Part of the proceeds from the sale will go to support children fighting cancer at the oncology ward at Kanti Children’s Hospital, Kathmandu.
According to the organizer, the art festival brings together four initiatives: to foster accessibility of Nepali art to the general public as well as the international market; to help underprivileged children with cancer; the festival also kickstarts the idea of transforming Thamel’s rapidly expanding west end, known as Saat Ghumti, into an area focused on art and culture. The Art Street, when established, will be the first attempt at promoting and dedicating a specific area into an intellectual, cultural and artistic district in Nepal; and to rebrand Nepal also as art destination.
The kickoff of the Art Street will coincide with the inauguration of the Kathmandu Art House (KAH), a physical space where Nepal’s top artists come together to create, showcase and sell Nepali art. The KAH is essentially a studio cum art gallery where diverse art forms and styles practiced by living Nepali artists share one roof.
At 4 pm on October 9, the paintings created at the art fest will be exhibited at MoNA. The funds collected will also be handed over to Kanti Children’s Hospital then.
The artwork created at this event will also be published as a catalog. Nepal has been widely known as a destination for tourism due to its natural and cultural landscape. While activities like trekking and climbing are sufficiently known worldwide, the cultural and artistic value of Nepal has been greatly undermined. Nepali art, both traditional and contemporary, brings to the table ideas and features seen nowhere else in the world. The promotion of Nepali art could be the springboard needed to revive the tourism industry in Nepal.
