ISLAMABAD, Jan 21: Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) has established a fully equipped laboratory for the restoration of damaged paintings and artworks.

According to an official at PNCA, the project got allocation of Rs6.402 million from the annual 2012-13 budget.

Therefore, the council planned to establish a laboratory to restore artworks which were damaged due to extreme weather conditions, transportation, natural disasters or mishandling, said the official.

The National Art Gallery has a collection of masterpieces collected over a long period of time.

The artworks are regularly displayed for public viewing and require maintenance.

A team of experts have been working on the art restoration project for the last 2 years and the budgetary grant has given a boost to the project, said the official.

“It is a nationwide project that will engage artists for documenting and preserving their works for future generations,” said PNCA official.

The grant allocated for this project would ultimately benefit the promotion of culture in the country and encourage the people related to this field, he added.

In this regard, the National Art Gallery has frequently organised workshops to train stakeholders from all over Pakistan, said the official.

In the past, experts from Italy, Japan, France and Germany were also invited to conduct painting workshops on canvas, paper, board and sculpture, said the official. — APP