The two passionate art lovers came together once again, a year later, to realize their dream of opening an art center in Nepal. Thus, Kathmandu Arts Center was officially registered in the United Kingdom (UK) as a charity-based organization to raise funds for the multidimensional project.
Now known as the Kathmandu Contemporary Art Center (KCAC), the much-awaited Center will be officially inaugurated on Sunday, January 17 at its premises in Gyan Mandal of Jhamiskhel, Patan.
“The Center will have spaces for recent art graduates, a library, gallery spaces for artists to exhibit their works, and will also be organizing lectures and workshops,” informed Celia, who arrived in Kathmandu in October 2009 for the International Art Festival. “Hopefully, we’ll have the print room ready in a couple of months,” she added, giving a tour of the first level of the Center.
When she came, Celia brought 2,000 books on art for KCAC which is a huge resource for artists and art lovers alike. “Because we need to preserve the books, we’ll not be lending them out but anyone can come here to read them,” put in Celia, while Sangeeta was busy preparing for the exhibition that will accompany the grand opening of KCAC.
The opening day is filled with activities, starting from 9 a.m. Children from Little Garden School in Bhaktapur will be participating in a paper-bag mask making project that will be hung up in one of the galleries later in the afternoon. Pawankali, the elephant from Jawlakhel zoo, will also be gracing the inauguration.
“We’ve sent invitations to artists to come and draw during the day as part of the worldwide BIG DRAW Campaign for Drawing,” apprised Sangeeta and continued, “The opening will also showcase the latest works of artist Birendra Pratap Singh. ‘Electro-Cardiogram’ is a series of drawings based on the ailing human body.”
KCAC is expected to be a place not only for visual artists alone but also for writers and theater artistes. The prominent theater group, Actor’s Studio, has already moved into the Center and will soon be beginning their new session of acting courses.
“The rent of the space is very high and I don’t believe in running the Center solely based on charity,” stated Sangeeta, who gives much credit to Yuki Shirai for overseeing the administrative works of KCAC. “In the future, we hope to become self-sustainable,” she concluded.
As the co-founders of KCAC, Celia Washington and Sangeeta Thapa deserve a pat on their backs. Hopes are definitely high for the Center, and so are its potentials for growth and its influences on the contemporary art scenario of Nepal.
Nonetheless, much is definitely in the pipeline to make the impact of the endeavor a success. To start with is the necessity to make Nepali artists aware that KCAC is not an academic institution.
Related story
New year, new hopes
