Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh is set to host three major art workshops and cultural camps in Ayodhya, Lucknow and Varanasi, bringing together established artists, young talents, art students and experts to showcase and preserve the state’s rich artistic and cultural heritage.
The programmes will focus on three distinct cultural themes — the Ram and Ramayana tradition of Ayodhya, folk and traditional art forms in Lucknow, and the spiritual and cultural heritage of the Ganga and Kashi in Varanasi.
In Ayodhya, a national workshop and lecture series titled ‘Ram, Ramayana and Ayodhya’ will be held from October 22 to 26 in collaboration with Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University. The programme at Ram Ki Paidi/Guptar Ghat will feature around 25 artists and 10 experts, providing participants an opportunity to explore and interpret Ayodhya’s living cultural traditions.
Lucknow will host the five-day ‘Lokdhara’ Folk and Traditional Art Camp from November 18 to 22, organised by the State Lalit Kala Akademi. Around 35 to 40 practitioners of folk and traditional art, along with 25 selected senior art students from institutions in Lucknow and surrounding areas, are expected to participate.
The camp will feature live art demonstrations, interaction with senior artists, masterclasses, technical sessions, practical training and exhibitions. Artists associated with Gond, Bhil, Godna, Pithora, Rajasthani, Kohbar and Madhubani traditions are among those proposed to participate.
The programme will also bring together established artists, including Padma Shri awardees and national award-winning practitioners, with young artists and students. Participating institutions include the Fine Arts Faculty of Lucknow University, the Department of Fine Arts at Dr Shakuntala Misra National Rehabilitation University, Amity University Lucknow, Goel Institute of Higher Studies, Techno Institute of Higher Studies and Vamsi Institute of Fine Arts and Design.
In Varanasi, the four-day ‘Kashi Flow’ International Art Camp and Exhibition is proposed for the second week of December 2026 along the Ganga. The event will be organised jointly by Ganga Mahasabha and the State Lalit Kala Akademi, Uttar Pradesh.
The Varanasi programme will seek to document and artistically interpret the relationship between the Ganga, Kashi, spirituality, heritage and local communities. Artists from several parts of the country, including Varanasi, Vrindavan, Dehradun, Mathura, Delhi, Jaipur, Bhopal, Odisha, Lakhimpur, Sirsa, Mau and Meerut, are expected to participate.
Tourism and Culture Minister Jaiveer Singh said Uttar Pradesh’s art and culture represent an invaluable heritage for future generations. He said the government’s objective was to connect this heritage not only with museums and archives but also with artists, students and the wider public.
He said the three programmes would provide a platform for senior artists to share their experience with younger generations, help traditional art forms evolve in contemporary contexts and present Uttar Pradesh’s cultural heritage through new creative expressions.
Additional Chief Secretary, Tourism, Culture and Religious Affairs, Amrit Abhijat said the three initiatives were designed to create sustained dialogue between tradition, creativity and the younger generation. He said the programmes would also support documentation of artistic techniques and processes and strengthen cooperation among artists, educational institutions and communities.
