Baaya Design aims to showcase the natural beauty and workmanship in tribal art by presenting them in contemporary colours, style and form. Shibani Jain, founder & CEO, Baaya Designs talks about customising Indian folk art in hotel and restaurant interiors By Sudipta Dev
How popular are folk art in hospitality design in current times? Also, it is traditional folk or contemporary folk styles?
In current times, hospitality is trying to bring in folk art and artisan skills to create something unique for their customers that reflects the local culture. The theme is – global expertise combined with local experience. There is a need felt to offer authentic local experiences combined with the best global practices. This is reflected in local cuisines and traditional folk art and artifacts. However, to make them fit into a modern setting they need to be adapted and made contemporary as well.
Which categories of hotels show a preference for folk art concepts?
Resorts, leisure hotels, religious tourism hotels all need to offer authentic, local experiences, even as they offer the best facilities relevant to their category. Thus, the way in which folk art is used in a luxury resort hotel maybe very different from a budget business hotel. In the resort, they have much more space and can fill it with art, do artisanal workshops for their guests, offer local day tours to local art villages etc. In a budget business hotel, art can be used to give depth and colour to spaces and make them more interesting. I believe that by incorporating art into the overall design, it adds meaning and connection to any space.
What are your specific offerings for the hospitality sector (which products/ designs)?
We offer bespoke artisan solutions to transform and complete interior spaces. These could be murals or frescoes or art furniture or artifacts in the lobby or restaurants. Similarly for hotel rooms paintings, lighting, art furniture and artifacts. We work with over 34 types of art like Gond, Kalmakari, etc, 15 different surface and relief work like brass Dokra, terracotta tile work, etc and textile forms like Phulkari and Kutch embroidery. What can be done with these artisanal skills is absolutely amazing.
We also offer a cultural partnership for the hotel industry, where we do workshops with artisans or tours to their villages and workplaces. This enables guests to appreciate the people and the tradition behind the art and also helps artisans develop greater pride in themselves.
What difference does this kind of art make to a hotel’s brand positioning?
Most modern hotels have the same amenities and facilities. In many ways, for a frequest traveller, one hotel is like another. This is where art can convey the main theme of the hotel and provide a visual background to enhance the unique identity of the hotel. Art can truly provide the hotel, a meaningful distinction factor and WOW impact.
Which is your most proud creation for a hospitality client?
We worked with Marasa hospitality in Tirupati to create one of a kind mural depicting the Dashavatar – 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu. This was created in brass, using the Dokra technique, which is a tribal lost wax casting method that is many centuries old. We also created majestic handles for all the main doors and entrances in the hotel. The themes was very relevant for Tirupati, which celebrates Lord Vishnu.
How can folk art be used in restaurant design?
Folk art can be used as a wall art at the main entrance to enhance the theme and ambience of the restaurant. Partitions and lights can also be used to create very interesting effect.
Any innovative concepts?
Baaya has created many innovative concepts and in fact we innovate in every project. We believe that the authentic artisan skills are very valuable, but the design, material, theme needs to be designed to fit in with overall ambience and theme. We have this done with murals which combine craft from a number of different places. We have used new materials like automobile shimmer paints to create a very different impact. We have innovated in art furniture and lights. We have created partitions and murals using Dokra brass casting techniques. The list goes on ….
In the future do you foresee more hotels and restaurants adopting Indian folk art?
Yes, local is the way forward – local artisanal skills adapted and innovated for modern, global sensibilities and interiors. Folk art is highly adaptive and can be made to suit a contemporary space or an ethnic one through our design capabilities. Art brings alive the space and makes it more sensitised to humun needs and emotions.
How does this help the craftsmen and help in survival of vanishing crafts?
A Kalamkari art, Warli art or a Gond art can only be done perfectly by master artisans. Bringing them and their art to the urban culture will not only help the craftsmen but also help in the survival of the art. As their art gets valued and appreciated, the younger generation is encouraged to continue by the tradition and that is how the craft form will continue.