Summer Tasks

For those of you keeping an eye on the Anokhi Museum blog, many apologies for the delay in posting any news for quite some time. We’ve been extremely busy!

The museum’s 10^th season came to a close on May 15th, marked by the onset of soaring temperatures and characteristic aandhi or loo winds. We have had great footfall since the season began in mid-July’14 – 6705 visitors to be precise, our highest figure so far.

We are occasionally asked why the museum closes.  Visitor numbers have always dropped right off in the hot weather (just a few hardy enthusiasts after April) ,  so it’s the perfect time to undertake any restoration work, make general repairs and carry out a thorough cleaning of the galleries.

After several monsoon lashings, the museum’s exterior walls are in need of attention. Repairs to the façade and boundary wall will soon begin, with skilled artisans using age-old practices to carry out the work and to also re-touch the decorative paintwork within some of the  galleries.

These archive photographs were taken during the 1989 -92 restoration of the museum building. To achieve the distinctive terracotta hue of the walls, the artisan mixes a traditional recipe that includes lime stone and red clay. A white linear detail is carefully painted on top. Retouching the extant paint work is a lengthy process that will take much of the closed period to complete.

Also during this time, a local lohar metalworker will create a lattice structure to place over the second floor courtyard – where our onsite block carver, Mujeeb bhai, spends his day carefully chipping away to make beautiful wooden blocks. The building currently has a similar stylish canopy above the central courtyard and printing demonstration gallery. When the new cover is in place, “Mujeeb’s veranda” will finally be monkey – and pigeon –  proof, and he’ll no longer have to worry about the local primate population muscling in for free block carving lessons!!!

Delhi-based architect Stephane Paumier devised the original design in 2004 for the museum opening, which has been adapted by local architect,  Gaurav Bhatnagar, to place over the front court-yard.

Other work to complete over the next two months is an extension to the museum shop. One small, unused room adjoining the shop will generate the space needed for a trial cubicle, as well as give a bit more display space to expand the variety of regional textiles on offer. At present, the shop showcases traditional – predominantly natural dye – cloth from Bagru, Ajrakhpur, Balotra, Bagh, Sanganer and Jahota. In the new season, we look forward to adding block prints from other regions in Rajasthan.

Next month we welcome a second block printer (and a new table) to the demonstration gallery, to work alongside our existing printer, Chacha bhai. While fulfilling small production orders for the museum shop, once the museum re-opens in mid-July, both craftsmen will be on hand to demonstrate their skills and interact with visitors in this very popular area of the museum.

To any brave travellers still moving around in the Rajasthani sun and hoping to call in at the museum, please knock on the door – it is now closed and the exhibits will soon be hidden beneath dust-covers, but the building itself is impressive and worthy of a not-so-quick look – entry free! To all of you who have visited AMHP during this season (and before!) , a big thankyou . Please come again!