Prince Charles launches arts education project for Pakistan

LONDON: His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales has launched an arts educational programme in Karachi which will help Pakistani students learn about traditional arts and heritage.

The Prince of Wales announced launch of partnership between the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts (PSTA) and Rangoonwala Foundation’s centre in Karachi where the courses will be taught.

His Royal Highness stated: “I am very proud to be able to announce today a new partnership with the Rangoonwala Foundation. Together, we intend to establish a new school for traditional arts and crafts in Karachi, Pakistan, which will, I hope, make a vital contribution to the arts in Pakistan and, furthermore, will introduce a new generation to the timeless principles that have defined their heritage.”

The Prince of Wales established The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts in London, UK nearly thirty years ago. It has proved a successful model and there are now schools nurturing traditional arts in Baku, Cairo, Jeddah, and China. Karachi will be a proud addition to a growing and illustrious list.

Traditional Arts School in Karachi will offer courses taught by experts in traditional Islamic geometry, ceramics, textiles, woodworking, painting and manuscript illumination; students will learn how to use and master traditional materials and methods and courses will be structured to suit all levels of skill and experience. The Centre will draw on Pakistani artistic traditions and cultural heritage, aiming to revive skills and techniques, revitalising the traditional arts relevance in contemporary Pakistan.

Initially, courses in Karachi will be taught by visiting tutors from The Prince’s School but, from the beginning, a local team of Pakistani tutors will be trained to lead the programme as it matures. Longer term, the Centre will offer year-long training for people wishing to develop their skills to higher levels.

Asif Rangoonwala, Chairman of the VM Trust of Education expressed how proud he is to bring The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts to Pakistan. He told Geo News: “The PSTA is a world renowned institution and we are honoured to enter into this partnership. We are running an arts gallery in Pakistan. Through this partnership, we will be teaching traditional and Islamic arts as one of the largest Islamic countries, rich in cultural heritage. We hosted a trip for the PSTA tutors in Pakistan and they returned with a 90 page report emphasising the need for a Traditional Arts Centre. This is a long term project commencing with arts workshops leading into a full degree programme.”

He said the collaboration will help a great deal in terms of facilitating familirisation with community, training teachers and promoting arts and culture heritage in Pakistan and in the preservation of arts.

The PSTA Director, Khaled Azzam, said he was delighted to have a chance to work in Pakistan and said “We will be setting up school in Pakistan where the public can take courses in traditional arts and be able to learn traditional arts, floral designs and visual heritage of Pakistan. We are taking to Pakistan the knowledge that we have developed here in London and we will be learning from Pakistan at the same time. We are looking for cultural exchange.”

The first workshops will take place this October 2017 in Karachi with courses taught by visiting experts from The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts.

Over the years, several Pakistani artists especially from NCA, Lahore have been trained at The PSTA, UK and are now teaching at the local Arts Institutes across Pakistan.