Anisha Kumari

This Foundation Project implemented by IFA will facilitate research towards documentation and recognition of Sikki and Moonj craft forms as an important practice from the state of Bihar, using the existing collection at the regional gallery of the Bihar Museum as an entry-point. This project is a collaboration with the Bihar Museum. Inaugurated in 2015, the Bihar Museum in Patna is a unique institution in the country that has attempted to reimagine museums in 21st century India with its focus on the people from the region. With its incredible collection of artefacts from the region, the museum aims to make history accessible to its community and the larger public. Anisha Kumari is the Project Coordinator for this project. 

Anisha Kumari is a heritage professional whose interests lie in craft, its market, community participation in its making, and at the intersection of museums and communities. She has a master’s degree in Management Studies – Heritage Management from the Centre of Heritage Management, Ahmedabad University. She has previously worked for the India Craft Project where her role was to ideate marketing strategies to expand the platform, build on craft revitalisation projects and liaison between artists and other collaborators. Given her interests and work experience, Anisha is best suited to be the Project Coordinator for this Foundation Project of IFA.

Sikki and Moonj craft forms have been intrinsic to the craft practices of Bihar. Local artists make utilitarian objects for everyday use or at times decorative objects by intricately weaving a type of grass that grows locally in the region. By taking cues from the objects that are displayed in the regional gallery of the Bihar Museum, Anisha will explore ways of revitalising these crafts. The project aims to document the procedure and technicalities of making as well as the management of the form and connections between the artists, their art and the community. The project has two parts – the first will be dedicated to research, documentation of the crafts, sourcing of materials and development of samples; while the second is aimed at creating those samples. Anisha will undertake extensive research trips to understand the existing forms of Sikki and Moonj crafts and their place in the craft economy. She, with help of a professional cameraperson will conduct audio-visual documentation of the crafts and interview artists. Based on the findings of her field trips she will put together a knowledge bank in the form of brochures, as well as create catalogues for different kind of products that artists can possibly produce with these two craft forms. Then, with the help of a design consultant, Anisha will work closely with the artists through a designer-artist partnership to develop new samples of products using Sikki and Moonj crafts. The batch of samples will be developed and produced keeping in mind the requirements of the current craft market, global networks of the regional diaspora and affective taste of the public at large.

Anisha also hopes to conduct interactive workshops in the museum to familiarise the audience about the craft and give the artists a voice and platform to engage with a museum-going audience. Keeping in mind the programmatic aim of creating engaging opportunities for the public, the Project Coordinator will plan different kinds of workshops aimed at schoolchildren as well as interested students from art and design institutes. For a hybrid audience, a digital platform is likely to be created documenting the progress of the project.

The outcomes of the project will be a knowledge bank documenting the crafts in the form of brochures, catalogues for products that artists can produce using the craft forms, and samples of products developed and created. The Project Coordinator’s deliverables to IFA along with the final reports will be the audio-visual documentation of the crafts, interviews of the artists, copies of brochures and product catalogues, the sample designs of the developed products with their photographs along with recordings of the workshops. 

IFA will ensure that the implementation of this project happens in a timely manner and funds expended are accounted for. IFA will also review the progress of the project at midterm and document it through an Implementation Memorandum. After the project is finished and all deliverables are submitted, IFA will put together a Final Evaluation to share with Trustees.