THRISSUR: Usually the word flagpole elicits an image of a arecanut tree trunk wrapped in white or colourful cloth or paper. However, the flagpole at the 64th Kerala School Arts Festival is different in all aspects.
Right from the idea and design, the flagpole embodies the theme and essence of the festival. The structure exudes artistry and finesse as was ideated by artist N R Yadhukrishna, who teaches sculpture at the Department of Arts at Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrti (SSUS), Kalady.
Speaking to TNIE, Yadhukrishna pointed out that the reception committee sought a new approach for the flagpole. “This is my home district and the cultural city of the state. So, it becomes a necessity that the festival projects all the finesse associated with the city,” he said.
After getting the nod to conceptualise the design, Yadhukrishna came up with an idea that would include all the aspects of the festival. “I wanted to include things like this being the 64th arts festival and the events also being 64. Based on this, I submitted a design to the General Education Minister, who was impressed and asked me to go ahead,” said the artist.
Yadhukrishna took around two weeks to set up the sculpture. “The main pole has been designed to look like a brush. The six of the 64 looks like a veena and hence, I created a look that gelled with the structure. Now, the challenge was to create the structure for the number 4. That was when I decided to use the veena and infuse it with the side feature of a caparisoned tusker, thus, incorporating the element of Thrissur pooram into the flagpole. To represent the number of events, I added 64 bells, the ones that adorn the anklets of dancers,” he added.