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
Minister of Federal Education and Professional
Training/Controlling Authority-NCA, Mr. Shafqat
Mehmood. 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
peoples 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 have been 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.
© Copyrights - National College of Arts
Design: Baber Baig - Development: Qasim Naeem