A ten-day long printmaking workshop kicked off at Nepal Art Council on Monday. The workshop, organised by the umbrella organisation of printmaking artists in Nepal, Printmaking Nepal, was organised by senior artist Urmila Upadhyay. 

It has been over six decades since the advent of printmaking as a form of art in Nepal. 

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Upadhyay, who was among the first artists to dabble into the art form, said, “The printmaking art scene in Nepal is on the rise. More artists today are attracted towards it and the art form has also received significant enthusiasm and support from art enthusiasts.”

Artists say that one of the attractions of printmaking is that it is relatively an economical form of art. One can extract over 100 prints from a single file. But then “it is also equally challenging,” said artist Birendra Pratap Singh. Artist Anita Bhattarai Khanal takes the current workshop as a learning opportunity. “The workshop, I hope, will prove significant and be an opportunity to exchange new techniques and skills about the art form,” she said. 

Along with Upadhyay, Shah and Bhattarai, the workshop features 50 artists including Uma Shankar Sah, Seema Sharma Sah, Lok Chitrakar, and Manuk Babu Mishra.