National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh 1

National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh 3
4 National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh

National Workshop on Implementation of

the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding
of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH)
in Bangladesh

Published by
Department of Archaeology
Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh
F-4/A, Agargaon Administrative Area
Sher-e-Banglanagar, Dhaka-1207

Published in 2013

Copyright
Department of Archaeology, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh

All rights reserved

ISBN: 978-984-33-7860-6

The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors/experts;
they are not necessarily those of the Department of Archaeology and do not commit
the organization.

Supervision, Edition and Coordination

Sharif uddin Ahmed
Supernumerary Professor
Department of History
University of Dhaka
Dhaka, Bangladesh

Assistant Supervision, Edition and Coordination

Shahida Khanom
Project Officer, Culture
UNESCO Office
Dhaka, Bangladesh

Design and Published by

Progressive Printers Pvt. Ltd
Karmojeebi Mohila Hostel Market
Neelkhet, Dhaka-1205, Bangladesh
E-mail: mail@threeppress.com

Photograph (Workshop)
Tauhidun Nabi
Department of Archaeology
Bangladesh

Printed in Bangladesh
This publication has been possible through the financial assistance of UNESCO
 National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh 5

CONTENTS
Foreword 5

PART ONE: NATIONAL WORKSHOP 7

1: Introduction 7
2: Proceedings 8
2.1 Objectives of the Workshop 8
2.2 Participants of the Workshop 8
2.3 The Workshop Timetable 8
2.4 Workshop Sessions: 17 to 20 July 2013 9
2.5 Field Trip 11
2.6 Evaluation 14
2.7 Findings of the workshop for the implementation of the ICH convention 14
2.7.1 Recommendations from participants 14
2.7.2 Recommendations from Experts 16

PART TWO: CASE STUDIES AND PAPERS 17

Folk Arts and Crafts of Bangladesh— Their uniqueness in Naksha (Design Motif ) 19
Md. Nawrose Fatemi
Cultural Heritage: A Collection of Designs of Bangladesh 23
Masood Reza
Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Paharpur Region of Naogaon District: Recommendations for Safeguarding 27
Bulbul Ahmed
Nomination of Pahela Baishakh for Inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity 33
Mst. Shahida Khatun
Traditional Painted Clay-made Pottery of Rajshahi: Shakher Hari 37
Rajot Kanti Roy
Concept and Guidance for Compilation of a National Inventory of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Bangladesh 39
Firoz Mahmud
Holding on to the Intangible: Problems and Possible Solutions 43
Lala Rukh Selim
Inventory of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Bangladesh: The Concept and Context 47
Saymon Zakaria

ANNEX 1: LIST OF PARTICIPANTS OF THE WORKSHOP 50

ANNEX 2: TIMETABLE 53
 20 National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh

Metal Work
 National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh 21

FOLK ARTS AND CRAFTS OF BANGLADESH—

THEIR UNIQUENESS IN NAKSHA (DESIGN MOTIF)

The folk arts and crafts are intangible cultural heritage of Bangladesh.
They are many and include Alpana or floor painting, designed cake,
Potchitra or designed frame, Nakshi Paka or designed fan, Nakshi
Kantha or embroidered quilt, baskets, flower vases of bamboo and
reed, folk-ornaments, folk musical instruments etc.

Different folk paintings are made during various religious festivals

and celebrations in the villages. Floor painting, painted pots, masks,
wall painting, tattooing and other body painting, potchitra, fancy
pots etc. are among them. Folk arts may be divided into painting,
embroidery, weaving, modeling, engraving and inlaying.

Naksha (Motif) in design

Naksha is the Bengali term for motif. Motifs are required for designing
any art, whether it is jewellery, fashion, furniture, textile or visual art.
Motif is an element or a combination of elements that is repeated Alpana
to create a pattern. Folk art uses traditional motifs reflecting the
land and its people. Different forms of folk art tend to repeat these
common motifs such as the lotus, the sun, the tree of life, flowery
Naksha in Painting
creepers etc. which are observed in paintings, embroidery, weaving,
Alpna: Alpana is painted during the Noboborsho or celebration of
carving and engraving. Other common motifs are fish, elephant,
Bangla New Year, birth day, Gaye Halud or turmeric paste in marriage
horse, peacock, swastika, circle, waves, temple, mosque etc.
ceremony, and on the altar of Shahid Minar or Martyrs’ Memorial
including the adjacent road during the International Mother
Potchitra

Language Day on the 21 February.

Potchitra
Pots are sketched based on different social and religious rites. The
word pot has been derived from potto or cloth, and the artists of
these are known as Patua. Many varieties of pictures are drawn
vertically one after another on a pot. These pictures are symbolic to
some folk tales or religious tales. Pots are drawn on many subjects
such as the life of Buddha, the story of Jatok, the love affair of
Krishna, Ramayan, Behula, myth of Lakhindar, story of Muharram,
Sonai-Madhab etc. They are also drawn on the life story of Folk Pir or
saint like Gazi, Kalu, Gazi-Champaboti. These are famous Gazi Pots.
But this art is now very much threatened for lack of patronage and
hence needs to be safeguarded by state assistance.
22 National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh

Naksha in Embroidery Naksha is Modeling

Nakhshi Kantha: Nakshi Kantha, a type of
embroidered quilt, is a typical folk art that has
been practiced in rural Bengal for centuries.
The basic materials used are thread and
old cloth. The colorful patterns and designs
that are embroidered got the name Nakshi
Kantha, which is derived from the Bengali
word ‘nakshi’ that refers to artistic patterns.
Most of the Kanthas are utilitarian with the
running stitch being used to hold the layers
of cloth together. A large number of Kanthas,
however, show ingenious use of running
stitch for working motifs and border pattern.
Kantha motifs have a magical purpose and
reflect both the desire of the needlewomen
for happiness, prosperity, marriage and
fertility as well as wish fulfillment.
Mehedi
Mehedi is a ceremonial art form. Intricate
patterns of mehedi or Henna are typically
applied to brides before wedding
ceremonies. Moreover, mehedi is applied
during special occasions like festivals.
During Hindu festivals, many women
decorate their hands and feet with Henna.
It is usually drawn on the palms and feet,
where the design will be clearest due to
contrast with the lighter skin on these
surfaces, which naturally contain less of the
pigment melanin.
Muslims adopted the practice subsequently
during Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha festivals.
Naksha in Weaving
Shital Pati
Shital Pati, literally cool mats are popular,
aesthetic in design, luxurious in their feel
and more expensive than other mats
made from reeds and natural fibers. Shital
Pati are crafted from the mutra reed and
commonly used for sleeping, sitting and as
wall hanging. These mats are exceptionally
well suited to the warm humid climate of
Bangladesh .
Colorful patterns and designs embroidered in
Nakshi Kantha
Intricate patterns of mehedi typically applied to
brides before wedding ceremonies
Sital Pati
Bengali New Year Procession with Masks
Terracotta
Mask: Pahela Baishak or Bengali New Year
is celebrated with grandeur and colours in
Dhaka and other parts of Bangladesh. The
celebration starts at the break of dawn with a
rendition of Rabindranath Tagore’s song Esho
he Boishak (Come the New Year) by Chhayanat
— a cultural body under the Banyan tree
at Ramna near the University of Dhaka (the
Ramna Batamul). An integral part of the New
Year’s festival is the Managal Shobhajatra, a
traditional colourful procession organized
by the students of the Faculty of Fine Arts
(Charukala) of Dhaka University. During the
procession, students carry large symbolic
figures and masks of bamboo-made owl,
tortoise, tiger and elephant. They also make
artifacts featuring rickshaws, oxen, crocodiles,
flying birds, warriors on elephants’ back, horses
and tigers chasing evil spirits.
Naksha in Engraving
Terracotta: Terracotta, often mistaken as clay
tiles, is actually baked earth (pora mati). There
are specific themes and subjects based on
which terracotta art is produced. A variety
of items are made of terracotta for example
plaques like wall tiles, lamps, pitchers, flower
vase, pottery, coin bank, candle-stands, dolls
etc.
The designs of these burnt clay products
reflect folk tales, pictures of everyday life,
artistic symbols denoting peace, love and
understanding.
Naksha in Inlaying
Ornaments: Motifs have played important
roles in the designing of jewellery. Designer
has always found a way to express his abstract
ideas. Motif has always been a driving force in
ornament design. Natural motifs are widely
used in the entire world. An expertly crafted
piece of jewellery can capture forever the life
like qualities of an animal on the run, a bird in
flight, blooming flower, butterflies, insects or
fish. Most of jewellery have floral and figurative
motifs. These motifs have been taken from
nature and surrounding environment.

Ornaments
 National Workshop on Implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh 23

Issues of Sustainable Development

Income Generations Possibilities
Naksha in different folk art and crafts makes the design unique and
thus become an income generating possibility for the practitioners.
This practice and transmission can be supported financially in
different ways, including the Alpana painters are often paid in cash
by communities who enjoy the benefits of their paintings. The
Mehedi designers are also hired and paid by cash who want to paint
their hands and feet.

Apprentices in various crafts pay their masters in cash or in kind

(for example, with free labor) for the transmission of the skills being
taught to them.

This can involve the sale of traditional handicrafts manufactured

using traditional skills.

Motif Painting

Clay Pots
Promoting green lifestyles
Most of the nakshas in the folk art and crafts described above are originated from the nature and the surrounding environment. These make
the user group close to the nature; even these products make them aware to remember the past tradition. These products are either made of
recycled contents or by renewable materials. The use of local material, recycled material and renewable material promotes towards sustainable
lifestyles for the consumer of these products

Possible Threats
The possible threats are diverse that may include freezing of the Intangible Cultural Heritage that is loss of variation and flexible market price.

Md. Nawrose Fatemi

Assistant Professor
University of Asia Pacific
House-51, Road-4A,
Dhanmondi R/A
Dhaka-1219