2.1 Who Is an Artist or Knowledge Holder?

When documenting a performing art, the term “artist” should not refer only to the person who occupies the centre of the stage. An art is usually sustained by a larger network of people who hold different forms of knowledge. This may include principal performers, singers, dancers, accompanists, teachers, instrument makers, ritual specialists, troupe leaders, organisers, family elders, costume or prop makers, and others who prepare or support the event. In some traditions, knowledge belongs not to a single recognised individual but to a family, lineage, troupe or community.

This Manual describes an artist as someone who understands an art, participates deeply in its practice, shapes and refines it, trains others and shares it with the wider community. It also emphasises that artists do not merely reproduce a fixed form. They respond to audiences, circumstances and changing social realities while deciding what should remain continuous. The artist questionnaire (annexure 1) extends this understanding by asking about teachers, family traditions, early supporting roles, fellow performers, students and the transmission of knowledge. Together, these sources show that artistic authority may arise through performance, long experience, teaching, ritual responsibility, craftsmanship, inheritance or community recognition,not only through awards or public visibility.

For this reason, the term knowledge holder is useful alongside the term ” artist. A knowledge holder may not describe themselves as a professional artist or perform publicly. An elder may remember earlier versions of songs. A family member may know the circumstances in which an art is performed. An accompanist may hold specialised rhythmic knowledge. A maker may understand the materials and construction of an instrument. A ritual specialist may determine when, where and by whom a performance can take place. Each holds a different part of the art’s knowledge system.

Do not decide a participant’s identity in advance. Begin by asking how the person wishes to be named and described. Record:

• the name they want used in the archival record;
• stage names, titles, lineage names or other locally meaningful names;
• the preferred spelling and pronunciation of their name;
• the artistic, ritual or organisational roles they perform;
• the community or cultural affiliation with which they wish to identify;
• the places, families, teachers, troupes or traditions with which they associate their practice.

Community, caste, clan, religious or Indigenous identities can be important to understanding an art, but they are also sensitive. They should be recorded in the participant’s own terms and only with their agreement. Do not replace a person’s preferred identity with an administrative category, and do not assume that everyone associated with the same art describes themselves in the same way.

A participant may hold several roles simultaneously. Someone may be a performer in one context, a teacher in another, a troupe leader during public programmes and a ritual custodian within the community. These roles should be recorded separately rather than compressed into a single artist label.

During the first conversation, ask:

“Who are the people without whom this art could not continue?”

The answer helps reveal the wider network behind the visible performance. Ask the participant who else the team should speak with and how to approach those people. This prevents the archive from presenting one prominent performer as the sole authority over a collectively sustained tradition.

An artist profile should therefore document both an individual’s life and their relationships. It should show who taught them, with whom they perform, who supports or authorises the practice, who they have taught and how they understand their responsibilities to the art.