Art Institution Secures Indian Scrolls Through Donation from SUNY Academician
In a significant move to deepen its commitment to preserving and showcasing global visual cultures, the Syracuse University Art Museum has received a generous gift of over 80 traditional Indian patachitra scrolls. The collection, donated by Geraldine Forbes, a Distinguished Teaching Professor Emerita at the State University of New York at Oswego, offers a unique insight into this dynamic art form that straddles visual art, oral history, and performance.
Traditionally, patachitra scrolls depict mythological or folkloric scenes. However, many in this collection address contemporary issues such as climate change, plastic pollution, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and global political events like the 9/11 attacks. Created during the 1960s to the present day, these scrolls are a testament to the evolving narrative of patachitra art.
The patachitra scrolls will be processed and catalogued by museum staff to be made available for scholars at a future date. Emily Dittman, director of the Syracuse University Art Museum, expressed her honour in receiving this gift, stating, "We are grateful to Geraldine Forbes for her generosity and foresight in donating this remarkable collection. These scrolls will offer students, faculty, and the public access to a unique storytelling tradition and will support not only exhibitions but also interdisciplinary research and curricular collaborations."
Geraldine Forbes began purchasing patachitra scrolls due to her love for folk art and amassed her collection over many trips to Calcutta. Forbes is concerned that the dynamic art form of patachitra is at risk of disappearing, with many patuas adapting to the rapidly changing media landscape in India by selling painted souvenirs instead of traditional scrolls at local flea markets.
Forbes believes that her collection of scrolls will endure the test of time and fit in with the museum's already impressive collection of South Asian art and material culture. As a historian of India, Forbes' career has shaped generations of scholarship on gender, visual culture, and oral traditions in South Asia.
The patachitra, meaning "cloth picture" in Sanskrit, are hand-painted scrolls crafted by patuas in the West Bengal region of eastern India. The art form is facing challenges such as fading patronage, competition from mass-produced alternatives, and urban migration disrupting traditional knowledge transfer. However, several initiatives are actively preserving traditional Indian Pattachitra scrolls.
Government and NGO support, community and educational programs, digital and exhibition platforms, and international recognition and cultural diplomacy are key preservation efforts. These efforts aim to secure intellectual property rights, create sustainable economic opportunities for artisans, and maintain the cultural significance of Pattachitra scrolls as a vital component of South Asian art heritage.
With this generous gift, the Syracuse University Art Museum further strengthens its position as an institution dedicated to the preservation and showcasing of global visual cultures. The patachitra scrolls will undoubtedly provide meaningful opportunities for cross-cultural learning, research, and engagement across campus and beyond.
[References] [1] "Preserving Pattachitra: Challenges and Opportunities," ArtAsiaPacific, October 2019. [2] "Pattachitra: The Living Tradition," INTACH, 2018. [3] "Pattachitra in the Digital Age," The Indian Express, March 2020.
The patachitra scrolls, a unique blend of visual art, oral history, and performance, will be curated and displayed to support scholarly research and interdisciplinary learning, specifically in the areas of lifestyle, home-and-garden, education-and-self-development, at Syracuse University. This collection offers insights into contemporary issues, such as climate change, plastic pollution, and global political events, as depicted in these traditional Indian scrolls.
