Heavy metal, hard rock, ethnic role: how Tamaala gallery promotes diverse art and merchandise

In Part I of this photo essay on Tamaala gallery, we showcase how two art entrepreneurs are promoting a wide range of crafts and designs from urban and rural India.

PhotoSparks is a weekly feature from YourStory, with photographs that celebrate the spirit of creativity and innovation. In the earlier 190 posts, we featured an art festival, cartoon gallery. world music festival, telecom expo, millets fair, climate change expo, wildlife conference, startup festival, Diwali rangoli, and jazz festival.

Tamaala art gallery in Bengaluru is featuring an unusual exhibition this week, titled ‘Hard Rock and Heavy Metal.’ It features the works of artists Umesh Prasad and Chandramouli, who use metal sheets and rock murals, respectively. Both are self-taught artists; Umesh studied industrial engineering and then moved into advertising. Chandramouli was working in the postal audit department and then became a full-time artist after retirement.

The gallery is also packed with ethnic art, crafts and games from around India, and draws a number of visitors who discover its works through social media. The gallery hosts around three art workshops a month, which can go up to almost one a day during summer months.

The art works are priced from Rs 50 to Rs 2,000 and are much in demand by art lovers – especially those interested in preserving Indian traditional culture and craft. This has helped the gallery sustain itself and provide livelihood to a range of artists.

The founders of the gallery are Suvarna Kamakshi and Vinay Prashant (see my earlier photo essay here). Vinay joins us for a more detailed interview in Part II of this article.

Now what have you done today to explore your roots and traditions and support those who keep it alive?

Got a creative photograph to share? Email us at [email protected]!

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