‘Art and Culture’- The Canvas of A Smart City

Abstract

‘Art and Culture’ are very important for the development of any nation. Culture and Creativity/ Art manifest themselves in almost all economic, social and other activities. A country as diverse as India is symbolized by the plurality of its culture. India has one of the world’s largest collections of songs, music, dance, theatre, folk traditions, performing arts, rites and rituals, paintings and writings that are known, as the ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage’ (ICH) of humanity. In order to preserve these elements, the Ministry of Culture implements a number of schemes and programmes aimed at providing financial support to individuals, groups and cultural organizations engaged in performing, visual and literary arts etc. Robert Lowie (1917) said that culture was not something genetic and racial. He has the view that culture is always an outcome of the human activities and culture is the very source. This way any type of Art-activity in an area of a city plays an important role in the development of Culture of the city. In India, using walls as a form of advertisement or expression is not a new idea, and so, Delhi (eg. Lodhi colony) accepted Graffiti and street art with open arms. The main focus to study Graffiti/Street Art is to understand the ideologies and cultural diplomacy of Graffiti in Delhi, and how street art came to Delhi from a major perspective. This paper will describe the role of Art and culture in smart city planning.