In an endeavor to promote and support design thinking, Pearl Academy recently engaged with Access Development, a non-profit company whose overall aim is to incubate new institutions to enable their self-sufficiency and self-sustainability. Students from the Jewellery Design course at Pearl Academy’s Jaipur campus went on-ground to work with smaller artisans and teach them about the current trends, which would help them get an edge over their competitors and sell their products better in the industry.

A lot of the artisans that the students worked with go through hardships that they face with the involvement of middlemen who take the commission for their work and leave the artisans under paid for quality work. Access Development works towards eliminating the threat of middlemen for these underprivileged artisans in order for them to get the appropriate value for their art through their store- ‘Ode to Earth’. Products by these artisans are available at ‘Ode to Earth’ and are picked up by leading retailers across the country.

While Access Development’s ‘Ode to Earth’ looks at giving these artisans direct access to brands, students from Pearl Academy worked closely with the artisans to enable them in terms of design which will appeal to a larger audience and also give them better visibility in the market. Coupled with the artisans’ expert handling of various materials, this new path shown to them by students at Pearl Academy will definitely help them create a larger assortment of products and in turn expanding their existing business.
Speaking about this activity, Shriya Agarwal, a student at Pearl Academy said, “Our aim was to empower these artisans and boost their self-confidence for them to uplift themselves from their current position. We are sure that with the new technology and the new designs they will be able to earn a lot more than they are able to right now.”
“Access Development services provide training programs for fashion jewellery artists in Jaipur. Pearl Academy has been an important part of our programme. Students from Pearl Academy have created a new identity for these artisans and we are extremely thankful to Pearl Academy for producing such designers, who are not only creative but also have technical expertise and are extremely social. The knowledge that these students have imparted to the artisans around the current design and technology will help them build on their portfolio and increase their number of sales exponentially as these designs are in great demand in the market.” quoted Kuldeep Panwar, Programme Coordinator at Access Development.
Speaking about this initiative, Dr. Veena Dutta, Director at Pearl Academy-Jaipur said, “At Pearl Academy our priority is to instill a strong sense of design among our students. While they shape their own career and carve a niche for themselves, it is important for them to develop a sense of responsibility towards the society and help in improving problem areas with the use of design wherever possible. This initiative was a step towards creating a sense of responsibility among students.”

“Working with artisans has given our students a sense of the problems that exist in the market for artisans. This was a small step for Pearlites, going forward they can further build on how they can be socially responsible and use design as an enabler.” added Dr. Dutta.