The Transylvanian Museum of Ethnography, a public cultural institution functioning under the authority of the Cluj County Council, the Embassy of India in Romania and the Cluj Centre for Indian Studies within Babeș-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca invite you on Friday, October 13th, 2023, from 3:00 p.m. the opening of the “Introduction to Indian Handicrafts” exhibition which will take place at the Museum’s headquarters (21, Memorandum street), in the presence of His Excellency, Mr. Rahul Shrivastava, the Ambassador of India to Romania.
The exhibition presents objects made with great passion, craftsmanship and patience by artisans from different states of India (such as Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha or Chhattisgarh), and it reflects key cultural elements of the nation’s essence: elephants, camels, peacocks, various flowers, alongside representations of people performing daily rituals. The handicrafts illustrate specific techniques, present in the subcontinent for centuries, kept alive and passed down from generation to generation. The most important of these is the Dhokra technique or the lost wax casting technique. This type of metal casting has been used in India for over 4,000 years and it’s still used today. One of the oldest known Dhokra artefacts is the Mohenjo-daro dancer.
The exhibition is accompanied by a series of photographs from various parts of India, capturing places, people, festivals, deities and everyday life, among which a set of images from the “Harmonious India” collection, signed by Mugur Vărzariu.
Through its organization at the Transylvanian Museum of Ethnography, the “Introduction to Indian Handicrafts” exhibition tries to reduce the distance between the two cultures and to rediscover common values. The handicraft objects from various corners of India, exhibited in the generous space of the Transylvanian Museum of Ethnography, constitute a wonderful incursion into the world of Indian crafts, and their joining with the Romanian ones, found in the Museum’s heritage, creates a symbolic space of friendship and communication between India and Romania. Thus, the event also marks the celebration, in 2023, of 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The following will speak at the opening of the exhibition:
His Excellency, Mr. Rahul Shrivastava, the Ambassador of India to Romania
Prof. dr. Tudor Sălăgean, director of the Transylvanian Museum of Ethnography.
Prof. dr. Sergiu Mișcoiu, director of the Centre for International Cooperation, Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca.
Dr. Mihaela Gligor, director of the Cluj Centre for Indian Studies, Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca.
The exhibition can be visited in October 13 - 29, from Wednesday - Sunday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., last entry at 5 p.m.