UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

04/15/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/15/2021 06:11

UNESCO New Delhi Celebrates World Art Day 2021

15 April 2021, New Delhi: UNESCO New Delhi celebrated World Art Day today with the launch of the campaign #UNESCOsupportsartists and a webinar on 'Shaping the Future for Artists.'

The campaign, set within the framework of UNESCO's global ResiliArt movement, has been designed to promote awareness of the status of artists in India and South Asia (#ResiliArtSouthAsia) and to call upon solidarity with artists who have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

It features short videos from four eminent artists: Ms Geeta Chandra, Padma Shri Awardee Indian Classical Dancer; Mr Sanjoy Roy, Founder and Managing Director, Teamwork Arts; Ms Nandita Das, Indian actor and director; and Mr Arjun Sagar Gupta, Founder and Director, the Piano Man Group (See below).

The launch led to a webinar organised in co-operation with The Marg Foundation(link is external)and Sahapedia(link is external), focusing on the 1980 UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist. The Recommendation serves as a key international instrument promoting cultural diversity and expressions, as well as specific measures to improve the socio-economic and professional conditions of artists and cultural professionals around the world.

Ms. Nirupama Kotru, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, provided the perspective of the Government of India on the difficulties related to the Covid-19 crisis. The webinar also featured representatives the Lalit Kala Akademi, the Sahitya Akademi and the Sangeet Natak Akademi. The session on international best practices highlighted the case of the Republic of Korea, where artists benefit from strong social and legislative support of their creative works.