its a golden chance for the art lovers to pick a picasso to homes. Wallframes fine art gallery, the leading fine art gallery in South India is conducting a Picasso museum print show and sale at South Point Hinton, Near Kasaba Police Station, Kacherippadi, Kochi
Phone – 2394982, 2390331
e-mail – sales@wallframes.com

Robert Calasso, the world famous writer made the city, a centre of attraction with his presence. The Italian writer was here on sunday 31st of january, in connection with the release of the malayalam translation of his famous book ‘Ka’. ‘Ka’ is based on Indian mythology. The book was released by veteran Malayalam writer sethu by handing over a copy to K.L.Mohanavarma. Malayalam ‘Ka’ is published by DC Books.

Value-added products, handicrafts and curios made from wood, bamboo, clay, bronze and silver; clothes coloured using natural dyes; and a variety of ornaments; are on display at the Ernakulam Women’s Association Hall here, where an exhibition-cum-sale has been organised by the Karnataka State Handicrafts Development Corporation.

While artisans from Karnataka dominate the stalls where curios have been put up for sale, the sellers of a vast array of  garments are mostly from North India. Chanderi saris and churidar pieces from Madhya Pradesh, coloured using  vegetable dyes, are priced at Rs.800 and upwards. Kalamkari bed sheets, saris and churidars and Mangalagiri  handloom materials from Andhra Prades are also on sale.

Terracotta items : Craftsmen from Kolkata have brought terracotta items and garments with intricate handwork.  Readymade garments are priced at Rs.450 and upwards. Kashmiri shawls, bags and cushion covers are another  attraction. Merchants from Jaipur have brought chains made of different stones, ear rings and silver bangles. This is for  the first time that Pavan Kumar, an artist from Rajasthan, is participating in the show. He has embellished many of his  works with golden and silver patterns. Again, from Karnataka’s stable has come furniture with rosewood inlay work,  made in Mysore. A table bearing the portrait of Dusserah procession is priced at Rs.28,000, while a table and six chairs  has a price tag of Rs.1.13 lakh. Sandalwood products are another attraction. A craftsman from the State has arrayed  handicrafts made from bamboo, screw pine and jute. The items have a 10 per cent discount.

Here is some fun for the kids coming up. Reliance Timeout, Cochin along with Colorama is organizing a coloring competition for children aged from 4-10 on 23rd January 2010 from 05:00 P.M to 07:00 P.M.

Kids from the age group 4-7 will use wax crayons.

Kids from the age group 8-10 will use oil pastes.

There are exciting gifts awaiting winners.  This just makes us wonder when is there going to be a cloring competition for the age group of 20-30.

On the eve of India celebrating its 60th Republic Day, Fashion federation Kerala invites you to grace an evening where young designers will showcase their creation in pure khadi and Kerala handloom. Also showcasing the exquisite jewellery collection from A. Geeri Pai.

An evening to remember our martyrs and pay respect to the talent of our next generation. The show will feature designs from Megha Grover, Ashish Jolly and Elsa Mary Thomas.

Venue: OG’s Tharavadu, Panangad

Date: 25th january 2010

Timing: 7:30 P.M onwards

Dress Code: Khadi, Handloom.

Entry By Invites Only

Come February and the city would be treated to an exotic dance performance for six consecutive nights as Kalakshetra, a cultural academy dedicated to the preservation of traditional Indian art forms. Kalakshetra will be staging its epochal dance drama conceived and choreographed by its founder the late Rukmini Devi Arundale over a period of 15 years staring from 1955.

Additional Chief Secretary K. Jayakumar will inaugurate the programme organised by the society Dharani at Fine Arts Hall on February 7 at 6 p.m.

The drama, based on the Valmiki Ramayana, will be split into six episodes with each episode running into almost two-and-a-half hours.

Details

Date : February 7

Time : 6 pm onwards

Duration : 2 1/2 hours

Venue : Fine Arts Hall , Kochi

As one grows in life we all understand that all things that come to you in life have conditions attached to it!! Whether you take it or leave it is totally your prerogative. So when our friend came selling tickets for an upcoming play in the city of Kochi (Cochin), I decided to take it, as the play itself was deceptively titled “*conditions apply”!!

Being high on plays after Rajat Kapoor’s – Hamlet – The Clown Prince & Naseerudin Shah’s Antigone, which were brilliantly put together, I had great expectations from “*conditions apply”.

For the record the play “*conditions apply” was brought to the city of Kochi by the Round Table and was staged at the IMA house. The play is written and directed by Vikranth Pawar with Mandira Bedi and Darshan Jariwala as the main protagonists.

When I heard about “* conditions apply”, the first impression I had was that it is going to one of those smart witted stories from the urban lives which most of us would relate to. And how they proved me wrong!!

It came as the most confused script with two individuals caught up in their own lives. The story is around Darshan, introvert, unsure of anything, positive affirmation speaking single male who keeps sprouting personality development jargon’s and Mandira, loud, again unsure of anything, single female. While Darshan came across as a natural, Mandira (in her funny Mickey Mouse tee) looked like she needed some loosening up. To give Darshan due credit, he was able to make the audience laugh over some humor and I thank him for the mercy.

The play started late..:(  and the first 10 min was ok. But, as the play progressed the audience sat in anticipation about what is to happen when their (Darshan and Mandira) paths cross, which did, but disappointingly nothing great happened. The story took a turn for the worse.

I can confidently speak for my friends and also yours truly who were silent throughout the play not in awe but waiting for some miracle to happen to make the play worth our Saturday evening. Just like Mandira who wanted to join “I have no f***ing clue” club in the play, the bunch of us sitting in audience wanted to follow her!!

The script of the play was totally contrived and looks like the writer had no clue what so ever in how to grow the characters. The biggest laughs came for some jokes which am sure was culled from old issues of Midday / Mumbai Times!! Their accidental meeting (or was it pre ordained!!) & supposed swapping of mobile phones looked straight from a C grade Bollywood thriller. And to top it all – in the end – they both retained each others mobile!!  At the end of it all a word for you – Mandira Bedi – You have used up your equity in Kochi – for sure…

At the end of the session, all that I had was a stiff back – sitting on those uncomfortable chairs and the feeling of having been taken for a bad ride. Well, am no authority to speak on theater but speaking for few of us, we would rather spend time over intelligent and good humored plays than something as morose & contrived as “* conditions apply”.  And maybe for the cost of the highly priced tickets – we could have bought a bottle of Scotch plus a Tequila and happily tippled away…J

Me thinks that this substandard play should instead have been called “Entertainment Guaranteed but with*conditions apply” or may be even better would have been “I have no f***ing clue”??

And a word of advise for future organizers, read that as – social clubs, please bring in shows which you have sat through & enjoyed, instead of banking on supposed celebrity value & thus spare the art lovers from such crass and costs.

RLV college of Music and Fine Arts was chosen as the battleground for The Inter University on InterVisuablity .  The workshop site ( i.e,; the college) was strewn with various materials. Students roam around, some with a purpose while some are just onlookers, but participants nevertheless. It is all part of Intervisuality — the theme of the workshop Transtrends 2010 at RLV College of Music and Fine Arts, Thripunithura, where students are evolving a form of communication through new media installation involving painting, sculpture and performing arts like music and dance.

On display are skeletons of 10 lanterns made of bamboo and fabric in various sizes. Calling it “Random Ranthal” (lantern in Malayalam), the final display would be a colourfully decorated fabric that would have block text printing in various languages and images that would add to the imagination of the viewer. The switching on and off of the lanterns accompanied by music and dance in a sound and light performance would be the final result of the installation in Intervisuality.

Students in the workshop have been busy carving words and images into potatoes to make block prints and then like an assembly line producing lantern-cloth stamped with these words and symbols. And inspiring them and directing them all is Noah Fisher, artist from New York. Joining him in his work are Anil Dayanand with his art work and Bipin Balachandran as curator of the workshop, both faculty members at the RLV College and numerous students from various departments. There are at least two students from 10 other colleges, of which six are outside the State.

This is the first time that a workshop and a seminar for fine arts of national standard is being organised in the State, said K. Sidharthan, Head of the Department of Fine Arts at RLV College. Wishing the workshop all the very best .

Painting by 12 year old Charlie Sullivan ( US of A ) on Global Warming ( Meting Ice - A hot topic ? )

A painting exhibition by artist V. Chandranandan will be held at the Durbar Hall Art Centre for a week starting from Sunday Jan 10th 2010.

Title of exhibition :  ‘Harbinger of Silent Spring’

Focus : The danger posed by global warming. Twenty-one pictures will be on display at the exhibition.

Indian Art Gallery, a gallery space for traditional Indian paintings including the murals of Kerala, was opened at Bodhi Building at Ravipuram on the 20th anniversary of the Indian School of Arts.

Kerala Lalithakala Academy Chairman C.N. Karunakaran inaugurated the gallery. Cartoonist Yesudasan delivered the keynote address. Muralist and painter K.K. Warrier, who is also director of the gallery and the school, presided over the function.

The Indian School of Arts in the past two decades has carried out restoration of several centuries-old mural paintings and temple murals (including those on the southern wall of the Sree Krishna Temple Guruvayur) besides restoring works by artists such as Raja Ravi Varma, Arumugham Pillai and Madhava Warrier. While there is demand for traditional paintings and murals, they don’t generally get exhibited in galleries. The Indian Art Gallery will be trying to address that. The Indian School of Arts will be under the able guidance of Shashi Warrier as the principal.