Babu stretched his hand as far as he could but it would just not reach the end of the frame. This was frustrating. He lost it, and holding on to the brush tightly in his little hands, he walked all the way around the canvas. Babu nudged the other boy to give him some space to sit on the floor. He pulled the frame near him and stared at the canvas with absolute glee and drew the beautiful blue sky. And in just a few hours, his painting was sold at the auction! A broad timid smile appeared on four-and-half year old boy’s face.
Babu was one among the 47 children from SIP Memorial Trust, who presented their paintings at ‘Outside The Lines’, an art expo hosted by Maisha Studio at Lalit Kala Academy. The trust is home to destitute children and kids with HIV.
Aishwarya Manivannan, the founder of Maisha Studio, trained these children with the help of her students to make this art expo possible.
Manivannan had three clear agendas for collaborating with the Trust. One was to let students from privileged backgrounds work with children from different backgrounds. Two, to let students at her studio understand that you don’t need money when you can impart knowledge and bring colour into someone else’s life. Three, to create a more holistic environment. By helping the children out at the very beginning of their creative journeys, she wanted to help them understand their potential.
The proceeds from the exhibition will go to the trust.
The expo also boasts of very unique artwork like Frida Kahlo in a Wonder Woman armour and Michelangelo’s iconographic depiction of ‘The Creation of Adam’ with man replaced by Superman. And the artists are as young as high school children.
The expo is open till 3 July at Lalit Kala Academy, Chennai.
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