The National Design and Art Competition this year saw about 190 entries from across the country. The participants competed in seven different categories. Unlike previous years, the competition this time was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ever since the commencement of the National Design and Art Competition in 2002, the competition has been witnessing an increasing number of participants every year.
“This year’s competition saw many beautiful pieces being submitted especially in the wood carving and sculpture categories. Our judges consist of experts within their fields so for sculpture we have the master artisans and master artisans in wood carving. They were all very impressed with the pieces that were submitted and credited us for coordinating such competition that created a platform for our skilled artisans to showcase their talent,” said Rinzin O. Dorji, the Executive Director of the Royal Textile Academy.
The competition is expected to encourage artists to continue to create fine traditional and contemporary art. It is also to provide a platform for national recognition and publicity for their work.
“This year there has been drastic changes starting from the collection of the entries and I have to mention the overwhelming support that we received from our cultural officers from the various districts who took a personal initiative to go into the rural areas to collect the textiles, the entries and send it over to Thimphu to partake in the competition,” said Tshering Uden Penjor, the Chief Curator with the Textile Museum.
The seven categories consisted of weaving Gho and Kira, embroidery, traditional painting, sculpture, wood carving, and contemporary art. Among them, the embroidery category saw ten submissions of pieces. A team of five led by Rada who has been constantly taking part in the competition won the first prize in the embroidery category this year.
“The annual national competition is very helpful for artisans and craftsmen like us to develop and improve our skills. I always tell my colleagues that participation is more important than winning. By taking part in such competition, we can always explore the talents of different arts and crafts,” said Rada.
From the 190 entries, the National Design and Art Competition this year saw the most entries (63) in the weaving Kira category and the least entries (6) in the traditional painting category.
The top three winners in all seven categories were awarded cash prizes of Nu 120,000, Nu 65,000, and Nu 32, 500 respectively. The annual competition is organised by the Royal Textile Academy and the Textile Museum under the Department of Culture, MoHCA. It was funded by the Royal Government of Bhutan and an American couple.
Kinzang Lhadon
