WOMEN ARTISTS IN CONTEMPORARY INDIAN CERAMICS

Abstract [English]

Indian has a rich heritage of terracotta art. The history of terracotta/clay goes back to the Harappan Civilization. It is one of the oldest mediums of communication between people, whether for the barter system or as a medium of expression for the artists. ‘Pot’ in the Indian language is called a KUMBH and a person who makes it is called a KUMBHKAR. A different name of potter came to be known as 'Prajapati' creator of toys that came from Brahma who made man of clay. In traditional potter’s families, women were not allowed to work on the wheel. Women help in preparing the clay, making figures, and pain and decorating the ready pots. (Kempler, 2015)
India is a patriarchal society, it is education that broke the age-old barriers and notions related to clay and brought self-sufficiency and self-consciousness for graceful living and honorable status in the society. Development of Art College in India after Independence encouraged many female students to learn different subjects like pottery, painting, sculpture, etc. All these subjects enhanced the technical knowledge of the students and paved their way into different art fields. Nirmala Patwardhan, Jyotsna Bhatt, Era Mukherjee, Shampa Shah, Dipalee Daroz, Manisha Bhattacharya, Kristine Michael, Madhavi Subramaniam are some of the artists who encouraged the future women ceramic artists in India.
In the present study, we will discuss the contribution of women ceramic artists in contemporary Indian ceramics.