வாழ்க்கை

Chennai, India
2015

This piece is part of the “Mediocre” series. Its situated on the side of the river in the slum that is directly in front of my wall in Greenways Station. Its popularly called “G.S. Nagar”. After bonding with some kids from this area I decided to go paint two small pieces towards the end of my stay in Chennai.
There I was treated with the upmost sense of honest hospitality and friendship.

Despite the rough view from the side facing the river, in the inside this is a beautiful and vivid place with many small houses painted in colors, the smell of home made food cooked on the street, girls drawing Rangoli symbols on the floor entrance of their houses and everything hand made with a mix of the closest care to details and scorned oddments.

But what I found to be the true life of the neighborhood were the kids, the way people interacted with them and how they ran about as if the street where just an extension of their house, and the people that surrounded them an extension of their family.

The wall is based on a photo of “Dharshan”. It is painted on his house. This piece is about the kids and the effect that they have on the people around them.

Special thanks to Georg Zolschoe for curating and the Goethe Institut for organizing. To shyam Chandar, Venkat Subramanian and Nijathan Mohan for their help and the people of Elango Street for their friendship and hospitality.