The Institute of Design at JK Lakshmipat University organised Design Guru Day in memory of Prof. M.P. Ranjan on his birthday, 9th November. We felicitated a crafts evangelist and an outstanding design educator, Judy Frater, who  delivered the 2021 M.P. Ranjan Memorial Lecture on the topic ‘Design Education for Recognition.’

Judy Frater is a social entrepreneur who has lived in Kutch for 30 years. She co-founded and operated Kala Raksha Trust, a cooperative for women embroiderers, established the Kala Raksha Textile Museum, and founded Kala Raksha Vidhyalaya, the first design school for traditional artisans. In 2014, to expand the design education program to an institute, Frater began Somaiya Kala Vidya. An Ashoka fellow, Frater received the Sir Misha Black Medal for Distinguished Services to Design Education in 2009 amongst many other accolades.