THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The reverence for wall art we humans have has been recorded in history. A beautiful mural in a public place always attracts admiration from far and wide. It is this reverence for beauty that made Tensing Joseph and a group of eminent artists, including Kanayi Kunhiramanan and B D Dethan, meet the then District Collector Biju Prabhakar almost a decade ago.
They brainstormed about a project to sprinkle visual appeal as a way to improve the civic sense of a population otherwise famous for lousy upkeep of public places.
Thus was born Arteria. Globally, such wall art and graffiti have a deeper, more political and social relevance. “Here, however, beautification was the only aim. About 20 artists, all eminent names, participated. Together, they covered the walls from the University College Stadium opposite the Fine Arts College till the Mascot Hotel,” says Tensing. His works inspired by tribal life fill the walls adjoining the Mascot Hotel.
The Arteria then entered two more phases. Nineteen young and upcoming artists joined the third phase in 2021, scaling up the works.
Later, in November 2023, a group of women artists painted the walls of Manaveeyam Veedhi ahead of the Keraleeyam event. The city shined with pride on its art-loving, creative side, while preparing to be one of the country’s 100 Smart Cities.
According to artists, these walls, covered with illustrious works, are facing neglect. Some works can be seen covered with creepers and posters and in some other places. Thanks to the lack of upkeep, many artworks need touch-up and refurbishment.
“I had brought it to the notice of the corporation. But there seems to be no mechanism in place for regular maintenance,” says Tensing.
He points to the sculpture Sagarakanyaka by Kanayi Kunhiraman on the Shankhumukham beach, now obstructed by an aircraft.
“This shows the general attitude towards art and artists. While we cannot do much to change the public attitude, the government surely can step up the upkeep and monitoring mechanism,” he says.
However, the Tourism Department and the DTPC seemed unaware of the status of the artwork or of any plans to extend the project to more areas. “Though some refurbishment works were undertaken on some walls, the onus of the upkeep is mostly with the organisations whose walls bear these works,” says Ashwin P Kumar, deputy director, Planning, tourism department.
“The project was launched with the help of agencies. As of now, there is no mechanism for the upkeep. Whether the project has to be extended to other areas has to be discussed at a higher planning level,” he says.
Some of the artists had already approached the authorities. They say there was no proper response to their grievances.
“It is this attitude that needs to change,” says Jayakrishnan K B, founder of Thiruvananthapuram chapter of Urban Sketchers.
In the initial phase of the project itself, there were doubts expressed by the artists about how the public would treat their hard work. There were many like Kattoor Narayana Pillai who expressed hope that there would be a shift in the public mindset. He recalled that while working some pedestrians had promised to help protect the works.
A decade later, the hopes have vanished, the walls and their value have been forgotten.
“However, we cannot say people’s mindset has not changed at all. There is of course slight improvement and the amount of litter around these walls has come down a bit. But there is still a long way to go. And that change will happen slowly with intervention from authorities towards a steady and disciplined implementation,” says Jayakrishnan.
The initial idea of Arteria was to change the artwork regularly so that the city walls would serve as an open canvas for talents. That did not happen and the artworks did shine to the glee of some for a while and the criticism of others who felt these could divert attention and cause accidents. Braving all these, the walls were filled with colours and creations.
And it is the same works that now remain as a lacklustre reminder of the hype of some years ago when artists looming over their creations from atop makeshift towers of bamboo canes were a common sight in the city.
Many now wonder whether art would fade away in time and whether the project that bore the vibrancy of artists and the city would be remembered as just another chapter in the capital’s creative heritage.