Today I started to explore the museums here at Sanskriti, I am particularly interested in the Museum of Everyday Art and Museum of Indian Terracotta.
The South Indian (Tamil Nadu) terracotta horses make for an impressive spectacle lining the walkways and grounds here at the Kendra, some of them standing over 4 metres high. They remind me of the images I have seen of the terracotta armies in China. Throughout the grounds there lie terracotta animals, figures, and Hindu iconography.
Ceramics has a long tradition here, in fact it has more people working in clay here than anywhere else in the world, apparently over a million people! Traditional ceramic techniques pass down from generation to generation within family groups and small communities, however their skills and work is often not given the status it deserves within India itself, largely due to their low caste in Indian society.
I also went to look at the Museum of Everyday Art, it houses a range of everyday objects including regional icons, shrines, ritual accessories, lamps, womens toiletries, betel boxes, scales and measures, and kitchen accessories to just name but a few.
I am particularly interested in some of the ornate locks and womens combs housed in the museum.
Tomorrow I am going to a ceramic community just on the outskirts of Delhi, a place called Uttam Nagar.
