Three handicraft artists awarded by UNESCO

Ramani Kangaraarachchi

Three Sri Lankan handicraft artists who represented the National Craft Council brought fame to the country at the UNESCO Award of Excellence held in Chennai India recently when they won awards for their creations.

M.G. Abeyrathne from Kandy, E.H. Butin and Soma Edirisinghe from Galle were the three winners of these awards. They represented the Silver Carving Category, Bobin Lace Category and the Rush and Reed and Fiber Category respectively.

Eleven creative products of selected award winning artists were submitted to the competition by the NCC.

A product certified with UNESCO “Seal of Excellence” meets the highest level of craft excellence and is distinguished as a benchmark for craft production. An international selection panel appointed by UNESCO judges the submission annually based on six criteria.

They are expression of cultural identity and aesthetic values, innovation in design and production, respect for the environment in materials and production techniques, marketability of the item with potential for the world market and social responsibility which means that no labour law was violated when manufacturing at any stage of production.

Participation at this competition gave an opportunity for local handicraft artists to display their talents, establish the Sri Lankan identity and widen the international market for local handicrafts. NCC Chairman Buddhi Keerthisena was a member of the panel.