SOCIAL SPECIAL...MAKING CAREER OUT OF MAKING A DIFFERENCE ...Lessons from the travelling museum

Lessons from the travelling museum MAKING CAREER OUT OF MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Dakshayini Gowda has visited many museums around the world where the history is diverse but the signs are all the same: ‘don’t touch the artefacts’. Gowda was determined to change that. In 2007, the artist with a Masters in museology and archaeology travelled to Gownipalli, a village 125km from Bangalore, to teach children up to the age of 11 about history and culture. She travels with a museum filled with replicas of historical artefacts such as the terracotta bullock carts from the Indus Valley civilisation and encourages children to touch and learn. Local craftsmen are also invited to speak about traditional art forms. But can farmers afford such artistic after-school activities? Gowda has created a self-sustainable revenue model that provides women with a livelihood and gives children an education. Women in the village are trained to make jewellery with modern designs while using traditional embroidery. The jewellery is then sold online to customers across France, USA, Austria, Australia, Germany and India under the banner Sanchali, a Sanskrit word for movement. The profits are pumped back into the arts programme for kids in the village. “I met many women who created beautiful embroidery but weren’t allowed to leave their houses. So I began making home visits. Slowly, as the women began contributing to the finances of the household, the men started warming up to the idea of letting children learn about the arts,” says Gowda. dnasunday@dnaindia.net @yolandedmello30

Yolande D’Mello DNA130505