Back Education Plus
Tread a new path through applied arts
Applied arts is a fine blend
of art, aesthetics and design,
which has branched
out to several sectors from
textile design to animation. The area,
which originated in Britain in
19th century as a result of debate on
nature of art, whether art should be
kept abstract or brought down to the
commoner's use, has grown by leaps
and bounds over the years.
It has successfully accommodated
new developments in art and design
and at present contains decorative
art and functional art and industrial
design, graphic design, fashion design
and interior design. The beauty
of applied arts lies in its being multifaceted;
a student of applied arts can
choose his career option from a
range of areas - abstract art to industrial
design.
"The application of applied arts
can be seen everywhere, from advertisements
to industrial design.
Many students from recent batches
are earning more than Rs.1 lakh per
month," says Kodali Sunder Kumar,
professor and Head of Applied Arts'
department at Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture
and Fine Arts University
(JNA&FAU) College of Fine Arts,
Hyderabad. According to him, applied
arts offers careers rivaling professional
courses such as medicine
and engineering.
Applied arts requires an impeccable
panache in drawing and urge
for creativity. According to Prof. Kumar,
those naturally gifted in art can
alone be successful in applied arts
courses. "You can train for any trade,
but not applied arts, without having
that in-built ability," he declares.
Institutions
These are the institutions that are
well known for bachelor's degree in
applied arts and recruiting students
on an all-India basis.
Sir J.J School of Art, Mumbai; Delhi
College of Art, New Delhi; Faculty
of Fine Arts, M. S. University, Vadodara;
Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture
and Fine Arts University,
Hyderabad; International Institute
of Fine Arts, New Delhi; Banaras
Hindu University, Varanasi; College
of Fine Arts, Chennai; Chitrakala
Parishat College of Fine Arts, Bangalore;
Sri Venkateswara College of
Fine Arts, Hyderabad.
Apart from these, a few State universities
also offer bachelor's courses
in applied arts. Postgraduate
courses in applied arts and allied areas
are offered at Delhi College of
Art, National Institute of Design,
Ahmedabad, M. S. University, Chitrakala
Parishat College of Fine Arts,
Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and
Fine Arts University and Indian Institute
of Technology, Mumbai.
Admission into applied arts courses
are typically done through entrance
exams. Application dates for
the present academic year are still
open for a few institutions. For more
details, one may contact the respective
institutes.
The opportunities are plenty for
the applied arts students now; indeed
they can tread their own, new
paths, says R. H. Kulkarni, principal
of Chitrakala Parishat College of
Fine Arts.
Earlier, it used to be only the advertisement
field that absorbed applied
arts students, but now they
have many avenues. Animation sector
is a big draw for many students
and quite a few of them have already
opened their own studios within a
few years after leaving the college, he
explains.
© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu
ART AND AESTHETICS: For those with the aptitude, applied arts opens doors to a satisfying career.