Chapter 20: Art and Design

Introduction

The dictionary definition of art “is the expression of human creative skill and imagination typically in a visual form, such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power”. Although the dictum “art for art’s sake” still dominates the world of art, art has become a creative career option too. Art and design are closely related, because the concept of designing has evolved from art. Designing is the practical or productive application of artistic instinct and aesthetic experience of art. Art and design have pervaded a wide cross-section of present day society.

Art galleries, art exhibitions, and art auctions have proliferated. Consumers have become design conscious. Whether it is a building and its interior, clothes, jewellery or industrial products, visual appeal largely influences the buying decision. Mass media – newspapers, magazines, TV and now Internet – are becoming more and more visually appealing. Computer Aided Design (CAD) is diffusing down from engineering companies to a wide variety of product segments, ranging from jewellery to footwear. Thus technology is now meeting the aesthetics.

Teaching of drawings in schools has been the most rudimentary form of art education. Art education began with the establishment of independent schools of art by eminent artists of yesteryears. Later, faculties of Fine arts were set up in universities which introduced Bachelor degree courses in fine arts (BFA) and Master in Fine Arts (MFA). Formal education in different branches of design is, however, of recent origin. The Government of India, in 1958, invited the renowned design team of Charles and Ray Eames to recommend a programme of design to serve as an aid to the small and medium industries. On the basis of their report (The India Report), the Ministry of Industry established in 1961 the National Institute of Design (NID).

The NID has pioneered design training and design application and has created awareness about industrial and communication design. Another landmark in this field is the establishment of the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) in 1986 by the Ministry of Textiles. The NIFT had brought education and training in Fashion Design into sharp focus. The large-scale proliferation of design institutions is indicative of the demands for qualified manpower in design activities. Many colleges affiliated to several universities in the South have introduced three-year degree programmes in Fashion Design, Industrial Design, Interior Design and Visual Communication (See Annexure 3).

The topics covered by the area Art and Design maybe broadly grouped into six categories: Art (Fine and Applied Arts), Fashion Design, Industrial Design, Interior Design, Communication Design/visual Communication (including Photography), and Craft Design.

This Chapter gives a brief account of the nature of each of these categories, followed by information about educational opportunities available. It should be noted that although some institutions offer programmes in several categories they have been included only in one or the other category. For example, although the National Institute of Design is basically an industrial design institute, it also offers courses in apparel design, textile design, and communication design. NIFT had introduced a course in photography. Most of the private institutions discussed in the section on Fashion Design also offer courses in categories more than one. The art colleges also offer courses in industrial design, textile design, visual communication and photography.

Art

As stated earlier, education in arts became an academic discipline with the introduction of Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) and Master of Fine Arts (MFA) courses in universities. The oldest college of arts in India, the Sir JJ School of Arts established in 1857 in Mumbai, is still regarded as one of the most prestigious institutions. Many present and past artists of eminence in the country are the alumni of this premiere institution. There are now nearly 50 university Faculties of Fine Arts and arts colleges which offer BFA courses and many of them have also introduced MFA courses.

There is also one university, Indira Kala Sangit Vishwavidyalaya (1956) in Madhya Pradesh, exclusively devoted to education in fine arts and music. Incidentally, some Faculties of Fine Arts also offer courses in vocal and instrumental music and dance. Annexure 1 gives a list of some of the well-known arts colleges. Though in most of the universities the nomenclature of the awards is BFA and MFA, several universities call their awards B.A (Fine Arts) and M.A (Fine Arts). The Visva-Bharati awards BFine, while Rabindra Bharati University (Calcutta) named them Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) and Master of Visual Arts (MVA).

The duration of most of the degree courses is four years. The entry requirement is a pass in 10+2 examination. The duration of BFine of Visva-Bharati, however, is five years, while that of the BFA course of the University of Madras is three years. As regards the course contents of the Bachelor programmes, while some universities cover broad areas of the subject, a large number of them focus on specific areas, such as, Applied Arts (or Commercial Arts), Art Education, Art Design, Art History, Drawing, Painting, Sculpture, Modelling, Graphics (or Graphic Arts). Several colleges also offer courses in the area of Design and Communication such as Ceramic Design, Pottery Design, Textile Design, Industrial Design, Visual Communication, and Photography.

Master’s degree course is uniformly of two-year duration and entry requirement is a degree in fine arts. At this level, the focus is invariably on specialisation in such areas as Art History, Aesthetics, Art Criticism, Art Education, Philosophy of Arts, Modern Arts, Portrait.

Courses in Arts are also offered by a number of polytechnics; however, they are mostly available in women’s polytechnics.

Fashion Design

Of all the branches of design, fashion design has a much wider appeal. The reasons are obvious. People wear a certain style of clothing, shoes, jewellery or even adopt a particular hair style because they are in fashion. Fashion is now a big business. Fashion shows, the style of young people’s wears, and the clothes of celebrities are all given wide coverage in print and electronic media. Articles on fashion are regularly featured in newspapers. Fashion also constitutes a major subject area of most of the women’s magazines. The fashion industry is enormous consisting of a network of designers, manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers who make fashionable clothes available to consumers. It is also a network of public relations officers, journalists and advertising agencies who promote them.

Fashion Design may be grouped into three categories on the basis of the material used: (i) textile or fabrics (and also fibres such as thread and wool), (ii) leather, and (iii) precious (also not so precious) metals and gems and stones. The end products adorn the human bodies. The textile design has always been promoted by the textile industry for manufacturing fashionable clothes – prints woven into or printed on textiles. Dyeing and designing of textiles, although a part of textile technology, have a bearing on fashion design. Leather garments, footwear’s and accessories (e.g., leather belts, handbags, gloves) are the products of leather designing. Like the textile technology), leather technology, which deals with processing and finishing of raw hides, has also a bearing on leather design. The third category encompassed jewellery design, and cutting, polishing and finishing of diamonds and other gems.

This section gives information about courses in (i) Fashion Design (Garments, Apparels, Costumes and Accessories; (ii) Leather Design; (iii) Jewellery Design, and (iv) Gemmology. Programmes in these areas are offered by the National Institute of Fashion Design (NIFT), and private institutions, arts colleges (BFA Course) and other colleges affiliated to universities.

Fashion Design: (Garments, Apparels, etc).

Apart from design per se, fashion education also deals with the management dimensions of fashion design (marketing and merchandising of fashion products) and production technology. However, newer areas in fashion education are Fashion Communication and Journalism, Fashion Illustration, Fashion Photography, and application of information technology (IT) in fashion.

National Institute of Fashion Design (NIFT): (NIFT Campus, Opposite Gulmohar Part, Hauz Khas, New Delhi-1100016): As stated earlier, the NIFT has pioneered fashion education in the country. NIFT, over the years has restructured its curriculum and course contents and training facilities in order to serve the interests of the fashion industry. It started with only two courses and later introduced new areas to cater to the current needs. At present, it offers nine regular programmes, four design related information technology programmes, one course in photography, eight part-time (continuing education) programmes and a distance learning programme in Fashion Design and Merchandising. The main programmes include, apart from Fashion in general, courses in Accessory Design, Knitwear Design, Leather Apparel Design, and Textile Design. Some of these courses are also offered at six centres of NIFT located in Mumbai, Calcutta, Hyderabad, Chennai, Gandhinagar (Gujarat), and Bangalore. In addition, NIFT has collaborative arrangement with three organisations. Viz., NIFT-TEA Knitwear Fashion Institute (Coimbatore) established in collaboration with Tirupur Exporters Association, Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (Mohali, Punjab) in collaboration with the Government of Punjab, and School of Fashion Technology (Pune) in collaboration with Maharshi Karve Stree Shikshan Samsthan, for offering some of the courses. Annexure 2 gives brief account of all the NIFT programmes.

Some of the important features of the regular programmes of NIFT deserve mention. Depending upon the nature of the programme (i) students are exposed to the latest trends in the industry and business through workshops, exhibitions, trade fairs, visits to museums and art galleries; (ii) students are eligible for scholarships and exchange programmes instituted by FIT (NY), NTU (UK) and other international associates of NIFT; and (iii) students are encouraged to benchmark against their peers abroad by participating in internationally reputed competitions. NIFT is also well-known for its unique student placement services.

The Apparel Training and Design Centre (D 8/2, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase I, New Delhi-110020): The Centre is sponsored by the Apparel Export Promotion Council, Ministry of Textiles, to conduct training courses in garment manufacturing at the shop floor level for the garment industry. It has six centres located at Delhi, Jaipur, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Calcutta. It offers several courses (mostly short-term) including the following two: (i) Diploma in Apparel Manufacturing Technology (One-year) and Course for Production Supervisor and Quality Controller (6 months). Eligibility (for both): a pass in 10+2 examination.

Other Institutions: As has been stated earlier, the Faculties of Fine Arts of some universities as well as some self-financing colleges affiliated to universities also offer fashion design courses. (See Annexure 1 and 3). Many women polytechnics also conduct courses of three-year duration in this area leading to award off Diplomas. In many home science colleges, M.Sc (Home Science) degree is offered in Textiles and Clothing. Besides, a large number of private players have now entered the field. It is, however, necessary to emphasis that providing education in fashion technology needs considerable investment to build up modern infrastructural facilities, such as class rooms, well-equipped libraries, computers and computer aided design (CAD) packages, and other state-of-the-art aids and equipment, as well as competent teachers.

It is, therefore, necessary to ascertain whether these institutions possess such facilities. In a recent Press advertisement, NIFT has advised that “students should not be misled by spurious institutions carrying names and nomenclatures and logos imitative of NIFT whose main objective is commercial exploitation of the aspirants for Fashion Education. It is not the fashion shows, celebrities inaugurating the Design Institutes, franchising or advertisements that make Fashion Institutions relevant for the industry”.

However, there are several private institutions which are in the field for quite some time, such as Pearl Academy of Fashions and JD Institute of Fashion Technology. Some of the recent entrants are (1) National Institute of Fashion Design, (2) International Academy of Design, (3) AVI School of Fashion and Shoe Technology, (4) Apeejay Institute of Design, (5) Wigan and Leigh College, and (6) IEC School of Art and Fashion. Apart from Fashion Design and Technology, these institutions offer courses in other areas also. A brief account of the courses is given in Annexure 4.

Leather Design

This area covers leather garment design, leather accessory design and leather footwear design. While several fashion design institutes (including NIFT) offer courses in leather garment and accessory design, there are exclusive training institutions for footwear design. The recent projected trend in the leather footwear industry is that the developed countries would continue to increase imports and the developing countries with requisite capability would continue to expand production and, export. India, with its strong raw material base and skilled manpower, should emerge as a major exporter.

India first began as a supplier of shoe uppers to the footwear factories in Europe. However, importing shoe uppers in Europe have over a time become uncompetitive, and therefore, importers are preferring to import well-designed full footwear. As a result, a number of manufacturers are trying to graduate as shoemakers from the stage of makers and exporters of shoe uppers only. Besides, the entry of foreign brands like Nike, Adidas, Reebok, Puma and Wolverine has created design consciousness in the domestic market. The domestic shoe industry, therefore, needs trained personnel in footwear design and related areas.

At present, there are four institutions sponsored by the Government of India which offer footwear design and technology programmes: (1) Footwear Design and Development Institute (FDI), (2) Central Footwear Training Institute (CFTI), (3) Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), and (4) Indian Institute of Leather Products (IILP). A brief account of courses offered by these institutions has been given in Annexure 5. A new private initiative in the area is the establishment of the AVI School of Fashion and Shoe Technology (See Annexure 4).

Jewellery Design

The traditional craft handed down over generations was limited to the community of goldsmiths, hardly literate and with no sophisticated design concept. With rudimentary machines and methods the products created by them served the needs of the domestic market reasonably well. The fashion conscious elites now demand something more. The introduction of foreign brand names like Cartier, Bulgari, Tiffany following liberalization, stimulated the demand for novelty in jewellery design.

This had inspired introduction of Indian brand names such as MMTC, Tanishq, and Enhance. It was National Institute of Fashion Design which introduced in 1991 a comprehensive course in Accessory Design which covers the entire spectrum of accessories: precious and costume jewellery, leather goods, footwear, watches, giftware, tableware, silverware. The programme emphasis and appreciation and application of traditional Indian craft base in a contemporary milieu. It is a three year undergraduate diploma programme open candidates who have passed 10+2 examination with 50% marks.

There are also several other programmes exclusively in jewellery design: (i) Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (Rajasthan Chamber Bhawan, Jaipur-302002, (ii) Jewellery Product Development Centre (D-15 Commerce Centre, Tardeo, Mumbai-400034), a project of the jewellery Export Promotion Council, which conducts several short term courses. The Centre aims at introducing Indian jewellery to Western countries and western designs to Indian markets, and (iii) SG Jhavery Centre for Diamond Technology (Irla Juhu Road, Vile Parle (West), Mumbai-400056) offers a Certificate course in jewellery Designing. JD Institute of Fashion Technology ( Annexure 4) also offers a course in the subject.

Gemmology

Though India has not been a diamond-buying country, worldwide, it has been known for its cutting and polishing trade in diamonds mostly around Mumbai and Surat. Nine out of ten diamonds sold in the world are cut and polished in India. According to De Beers, the world’s leading seller of rough diamonds, diamond trading in India is growing steadily. Diamond jewellery is also now becoming increasingly popular in India. It is not therefore, surprising that the Antwerp-based International Gemmological Institute (IGI) has set up its laboratory (IGI India) in Mumbai. It is only the fourth in the world, the other three being in the USA (New York), Thailand (Bangkok) and Belgium (Antwerp).

However, the training facilities are still limited. SG Jhavery Centre for Diamond Technology offers a course which is open to students who have passed the 10+2 examination. Two other institutions are: (i) Indian Diamond Institute (Katargam, GIDC, Sumal Diary Road, Surat-395008) sponsored by the Gujarat Jewellery Export Promotion Council, and (ii) Gemstones Artisan Training School (Jhalana Mahal, Jaipur-3002017) sponsored by the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council. Both these institutions have programmes of various durations in cutting, and polishing, carving and grading of diamonds.

Industrial Design

Engineering design and drawing, has always been a component of engineering education which has much to do with the functional aspect rather than aesthetics. Industrial design on the other hand, encompasses creative design of products and product systems with due consideration of human, technical and aesthetic aspects. It combines technical knowledge of materials, machines and production with artistic talent in order to improve upon both the appearance and functionality of the products. Programmes in industrial design are offered among others by (i) National Institute of Design, (ii) Indian Institutes of Technology, (iii) Indian Institute of Science, and (iv) School of Planning and Architecture.

National Institute of Design, Paldi, and Ahmedabad: The educational programme of National Institute of Design is offered by two major faculties: Industrial Design, and Communication Design. Each offers specialisation in various design disciplines. In Industrial Design area, courses available are Product Design, Furniture Design, Textile Design, Ceramic Design and Apparel Design. Communication Design area has an integrated programme which covers the Print Media, Photography, Animation, Audiovisuals, Video Film, and Exhibition Design. Animation Design is also offered as a specialisation. Programmes are offered at three levels: (1) Graduate Diploma Programme in Design (GDPD), (2) Postgraduate Diploma Programme in Design (PGDPD), and (3) Post-Diploma Programme in Design (PDPD). A brief account of these programmes is given in Annexure 6.

Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) & Indian Institute of Science (IISc): Indian Institute of Technology (Industrial Design Centre), Mumbai, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, and Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, offer two-year course in industrial design leading to MDes degree. Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai also offers MDes programme in Visual Communication. The eligibility requirements are: Bachelor degree in engineering (any branch), bachelor degree in architecture, five-year diploma in art, or BFA (professional course) and NID professional diploma. Admission to all these programmes are based on the results of Common Entrance Examination for Design (CEED) conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology, (Industrial Design Centre, Powai, Mumbai-4000076) held at IITs (Chennai, Delhi, Kanpur, Kharagpur and Mumbai) and IISc (Bangalore).

The newly established IIT in Guwahati has introduced a BDes programme in the field of Industrial Design and Communication Design. The selection is made on the basis of the results of IIT-JEEs

School of Planning and Architecture (4, Block B, Indraprastha Estate, New Delhi-110002): The School has recently introduced the Master of Industrial Design programme of two-year duration. The March programme of the School offers Industrial Design as one of the specialisations.

Annexure 4 gives information about courses in industrial design offered by some private institutions. Information about BFA courses in the subject is given in Annexure 3.

Interior Design

As has been discussed in Chapter 19, Architecture involves a great deal of creative design skill. Though the mother profession of interior design is architecture, some years ago the well-known British architect Dr Frank Duffy, surveying the world design scene, made an amazing statement that “architecture is now a branch of interior design”!. Developments during the past two decades which saw spectacular creative and commercial growth in interior designing have had the effect of turning Duffy’s observation some what into prophesy.

Growing affluence has motivated the corporate sector all over the world whether departmental stores, hotels or corporate offices to invest in more sophisticated interior design. Better interior design can not only lead to improved commercial performance in the work place, but also to improved cultural life in civic buildings, public spaces and amenities. “Designer’s Home” is no longer a non-India concept. The neo-rich or super-rich now want their residences as “Designer’s Home”.

This area, at least in India, is still dominated by the architects. However, there are several elements in the interior designing which go beyond the technical aspects of architectural work. An interior designer is required to plan the arrangement of furniture, draperies, floor coverings, and so on. Separate courses for training interior designers are, therefore, being introduced. Designers often work in close association with architects. A typical course in interior design covers basic building and structural systems, construction material, design, décor, layout, treatment of interiors, lighting, colour, etc. Guru Nanak Dev University (Amritsar-143005) also offers BDes (4 years) and MDes (2 years) courses.

A comprehensive course is offered by the School of Interior Design in the Institute of Environmental Design (near Bhaikaka Library, Vallabh Vidyanagar-388120, Gujarat). It is a five-year full-time course. The entry requirement is a pass in 10+2 examination in science stream. Marathwada Mitra Mandals College of Architecture has established the School of Interior Design (302/A Deccan Gymkhana, Pune-411004) which offers a two-year diploma course in the subject. The Mangalore University has given permission to three colleges to introduce three-year B.Sc courses in Interior Design and Decoration (See Annexure 3).

Jenson & Nicholson, a paint manufacturer has established a school, Exterior-Interiors which offers “National Diploma Course in Interior Design” of one-year duration in several centres in India (Chennai Office: 2^nd Floor, Greames Office Complex, 147 Greames Road, Chennai-600006).

Communication Design/Visual Communication

Communication Design, deals with knowledge and information transfer using various visual media such as prints, photography, video and electronic media. Multimedia, Computer Graphics, Digital Communication. Web-pages also fall in this category. With computers pervading practically every field, graphic artists have also begun using multimedia technology for the creation of visuals. All these have revolutionized the entire communication process.

The National Institute of Design offers five courses in this area: Graphic Design, Animation Film Design, Film and Video Communication New Media and Exhibition Design. The Indian Institute of Technology (Mumbai) offers MDes in Visual Communication. The Indian Institute of Technology (Guwahati) has also introduced a BDes course in Communication Design. The Heart Animation Academy (7 A Road No. 12, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad), is exclusively devoted to the training of animation design. The minimum qualification required is 10^th standard. The Academy expects that candidates should be able to take instruction in English and possess a strong art background. The duration of the course is 16 months leading to a Diploma in Traditional Animation.

Information about BFA and B.Sc degree courses in the subject is given in Annexure 1 and 3. Annexure 4 gives information about the courses offered by private institutions.

Journalism Mass Media and Communication courses (See Chapter 36) offered by several institutions have a significant component of the topic in their curriculums e.g., (1) University of Pune (Department of Communication Studies, Pune-411007) – Master of Mass Communication Studies. (2) AKM Mass Communication Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia (New Delhi-110025). Its M.A course in Mass Communication covers TV Film and Audio-Visual Production based on Still Photography. Pentamedia Graphic Limited (No. 1, First Main Road United India Colony, Chennai-600024) offers training programmes for creative artists (preferably BFA degree holders) in such areas as animator (2D/3D), special effects, motion capture, content creation. National Multimedia Resource Centre (C-DAC) (Agricultural College Campus, Pune-411005) has introduced a Diploma in Advanced Computer Arts of five months duration.

Photography: Study of photography as an academic discipline is a recent phenomenon. Many distinguished photographers all over the world took to photography as a hobby, an expensive hobby at that. The rapid expansion of media has given rise to a variety of specialist fields of photography. A look at the yellow pages under the heading photography would give an idea about the varieties of specialisation-advertising photography, industrial photography, fashion photography, wildlife photography, product photography, still photography and even food photography. Then, there is the press photography practiced by photojournalists, which in recent years opened up very lucrative career opportunities.

Science photography (including forensic photography) is another area of specialisation. The introduction of highly sophisticated cameras, colour photography and advanced film processing and printing systems, call for formal training in the subject. However, training opportunities continue to be very limited. The Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University offers a four-year B FA (Photography) course. Diploma courses of one-year duration are available in Allahabad University, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gorakhpur University and Sri Venkateswara University (Tirupati). As stated earlier, NIFT has introduced a six-month course photography.

A new photography training institution, Light and Life Academy, is coming up in picturesque Oodakamandalam (better known as Ooty) in Tamil Nadu to offer training in photography of international standard. It proposes to offer a two-year full-time professional photography diploma course (residential) which may cost about Rs.6 lakh. There would also be one- and two-week intensive workshops for practicing professionals or advanced amateurs, basic courses for beginners, courses on current trends and techniques for art directors and visualizes, special courses for visual communication and art school students, courses for children, short-term courses on brand-building through photography for marketing and brand managers, and courses for special interest groups like architects, doctors, researchers, and on sports, commercial, news, travel, fashion, industrial, and wildlife photography.

Craft Design

Programmes in Craft Design are offered by: (1) Visva-Bharati (Santiniketan-731235, District Birbhum, West Bengal) – (1) Diploma in Fine Arts and Crafts Design of five-year duration open to candidates who have passed the 10+2 examination; (ii) Certificate in Craft Design of two-year duration open to candidates (above 16 years) with aptitude in the field. (2) Indian Institute of Crafts and Design (B-16/A Bhawani Singh Road, Opp: Nehru Sahakar Bhawan, C-Scheme, Jaipur-302005 Rajasthan): The Institute has been set-up by the Government of Rajasthan as an autonomous organisation. At present it offers a Postgraduate Programme in raft Design of three-year duration. Eligibility: Graduate or Diploma Holders (three-year course) in any discipline. Exceptional candidates with 3-5 years experience in craft of related manufacturing areas with minimum 10+2 level education are also eligible.