With the view of energising the burgeoning watercolour scene in Nepal, the International Watercolour Soceity’s Nepal Chapter hosted a one-day workshop at the Tokha Keba Water Fun Park on July 13. The workshop, supported by the Nepal Academy of Fine Arts (Nafa), was titled Experiment in Watercolour and was inaugurated by Navaraj Bhatta of Nafa.

“Although the tradition of water colour painting in Nepal was been around for long, it is has really taken off in the last two decades,” said Bhatta, speaking during the event. “We believe that the workshop will push the artists to come up with new and sophisticated ideas and techniques and take the craft further,” he said. Speaking during the event, artist Devendra Thumkeli elaborated on the motifs of the form. “With watercolour, one can concentrate on the creative aspects of the art while putting out a visually appealing work,” he said. “Watercolour hence is a

powerful and very comprehensive medium. The transparency and the visual beauty can be very soothing,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Chapter is will be organising an international watercolour workshop and exhibit come November. NB Gurung of the Chapter believes the recently-concluded workshop has paved the way for the exhibit and has also sent a surge of motivation to the artists.

The workshop featured more than a three dozen artists, including KK Karmacharya, Jeevan Rajopadhyaya, Mahesh Acharya, NB Gurung, Devendra Thumkeli, Anita Khanal, SC Suman, Keshav Raj Khanal and Raju Rai, among others.