Date:26/12/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/12/26/stories/2005122607130200.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Bringing art closer to the people

Staff Reporter

Chitrakala Parishath organises Chitra Santhe on the last Sunday every year

THAT'S WHAT I WANTED: Nearly 1,000 artists from different parts of the country displayed their work on Kumara Krupa Road in Bangalore where Chitra Santhe was held on Sunday. — Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

BANGALORE: Art ruled on the last Sunday of 2005. Taking over the entire stretch of the city's Kumara Krupa Road, artists young and old, professional and the pedestrian, spread out their ware. Looking for that exquisite work to adorn their walls, the crowds thronged the place. Chitra Santhe, the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath's way of bringing art closer to the people, had just entered its third innings in a row.

Colours splashed across canvasses galore, artists from Bangalore and beyond beckoned the buyers. Some bought, while many simply shot glances of appreciation and walked on.

On both sides of the road were artists from Delhi, Kolkata, Bhopal, Pune, Mumbai, Chennai, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and towns and villages across Karnataka.

As the santhe gathered pace and momentum, artists got into the selling mode. Away from the costly art galleries, the painters were talking, bargaining, striking deals with art lovers, both genuine and cosmetic.

At the end of the day, over a lakh people had walked the street up and down, picking up an artwork here, throwing a glance over an exquisite painting there.

1,400 artists

In all, 1,260 artists had registered for the event. But on the santhe day, there were about 1,400 creative men and women on the street, all talking in tandem in the language of art.

Among them were 160 from outside the State, 400 from Bangalore and 865 from different parts of the State. The numbers had definitely grown. The first santhe in 2003 had just 685 artists. Last year, the number had gone up to 860.

Former students of the Chitrakala Parishath, present students from art schools across the country, amateur artists and even untrained professionals were all there.

A self-taught painter Manish Saxena had come all the way from Delhi. "The response has been good. People are asking for certain kind of looks for their interiors," he said.

But another self-taught artist Prashanth observed that he had many visitors but not many buyers. His collection of abstract and modern art paintings was much appreciated but did not translate into sales.

Two artists from the Chennai College of Art did get more than looks from the visitors.

By 4 p.m. on the santhe day, they had sold 25 of their realistic paintings. "Many people came with the intention of buying. That was a good sign. Organising shows such as these is definitely a good way to help young artists. The prices charged by the galleries often do not trickle down to the artists," said one of them.

Making good money in a jiffy were many young artists, rendering realistic portraits of the visitors.

Charging Rs. 50 to Rs. 100 for a portrait, they had people queue up before them. Deep inside the Chitrakala Parishath campus, carpenters were ready to frame the portraits and paintings bought, of course, for a price.

And there were the pencil-smiths prepared to sketch out a portrait in pencil from a photograph.

Sculptors, cartoonists and tattoo artists were there too, adding variety and colour to the proceedings. After curtains at 7 p.m., it was farewell to the santhe until the last Sunday of 2006.