In December 2006, four Cambodian Living Arts representatives, including Master Ieng Sithul, scholarship student Sinat Nhok, CLA Founder Arn Chorn-Pond, and Board Co-President Charley Todd, traveled to India for a week-long exchange of stories, lessons, demonstrations, and recordings with Indian performing art students and masters.
It was an exciting opportunity for CLA artists to glimpse a part of Cambodia's heritage: from Khmer renditions of the Reamkher--Cambodia's version of the Ramayana--to the carvings on Angkorean temples, India's influence on traditional Cambodian culture can still be seen today.
Brought together by David Kahler, World Education's Vice President of Asia and Special Projects, the arts exchange was hosted by a partnership between the World Education in India; VR Devika of the Aseema Trust, a World Education partner working in Southern India; the Prakriti Foundation; and Fabindia, a company that markets, distributes, and employs Indian artisans.
The collaboration included public screenings of
Some of the events of the exchange were covered in:
The Hindu Magazine
The Hindu Business Line
Asian Age
Mutually appreciative of one another's craft, teaching, and work to restore traditional arts, the participants hope that this trip will prove to be only the beginning of many more collaborative opportunities to come.
