Tollinton Block is functioning as an extended block of the college where multiple cultural and academic activities including degree shows, festivals and musical evenings have been carried out.

The historic building of Tollinton Market that was originally part of the National College of Arts, has been acquired again by NCA. The building has remained under-utilised for a long period of time and years of inattention have noticeably damaged the structure of the building. As a proud custodian of the heritage of Lahore, the NCA is honoured and privileged to have the Tollinton Market under its banner and aims to safeguard it for its students as well as the citizens of Lahore.

Soon after the building was given in the possession of the National College of Arts in October, 2019, an Industrial Exhibition was held in December, 2019 which was inaugurated by the then Minister of Federal Education and Professional Training/Controlling Authority-NCA. The building with its unique structure and design which was once the centre of art activities, has been restored after acquisition and a number of cultural events have since been held at its premises. Musical evenings, qawwali nights, cultural shows and design exhibitions attracted a large number of visitors/ audience. The splendid response from the public is an affirmation of our view that the space belongs to the people of Lahore and it should be used for promoting culture.

The building is being restored while new facilities are being installed to convert it into a contemporary space. An extensive project of reviving the dying traditional arts has also been initiated at the Tollinton Market. The place will utilize the expertise of the master crafts people in training a new generation of young traditional practioners. The Tollinton market will hold a regular display of artisanal products which endeavour to use only original materials.

Auditorium Seating at Tollinton
Auditorium seating at Tollinton Market has been  established with seating capacity of 150 persons.
Additionally, it can be extended to accommodate 30 more attendees.

Textile Looms & Textile Production
Tollinton Market houses a ‘Textile craft weaving  souvenir shop,’ which is an initiative that aims to promote the dying crafts of Pakistani heritage. Along with the shop there are workshops for students that include training by experts in the field, aiming to help them learn new techniques. This allows students to incorporate the new techniques that include off loom and handloom (weaving) such as khes, khaddar, lungi, sussri, durri, blocks printing, hand embroidery etc. into designing their own products. The training workshops led by master artisans help provide valuable capacity building for the artisans as well as students. 




Restoration
Maintenance Officer
Esmaeil Arbab Shahestan

Archivist / Coordinator
Tollinton Block
Rida Fatima