BLR Hubba is one of Bengaluru’s vibrant arts and culture festivals. Recently, they announced the launch of GodeBLR, a public art initiative that aims to transform the city’s walls into vibrant canvases of expression. BLR Hubba is a citizen-oriented festival and is anchored by UnboxingBLR Foundation, a not-for-profit platform that helps people explore and experience Bengaluru’s dynamic transformation in newer and deeper ways. In collaboration with Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), GodeBLR is a part of the buildup to BLR Hubba. The initiative will feature temporary façades and several murals on prominent walls of the metro stations and locations across Bengaluru, offering residents and visitors a fresh visual narrative of the city through art. Kamini Sawhney, chief curator of GodeBLR, lets us in on everything surrounding this initiative.
“GodeBLR is the brainchild of Ravichandar V, chief facilitator of BLR Hubba. He was really keen on seeing the whole city come to life through art. What is important is that GodeBLR opens the conversation between the city and its people. The murals that we have are meant to provoke, challenge and get people to be interested in the conversation about their city — what it was and what it can be,” begins Kamini.
The initiative includes both local and national artists and when asked how these artists were selected, Kamini reveals, “We decided to do an open call. We decided to make it a democratic process. Anyone in the city or across the country, who was interested in the project was welcome. We created an independent jury of three members in the city and we tried to make it as diverse as possible. Suresh Jayaram, founder of 1 ShanthiRoad Studio Gallery is one of the members. Then we also have Ravikumar Kashi, who is an artist. He did the research and brought out a book on flexed banners in the city. We also have Archana Hande, a multidisciplinary artist and academician, specialising in painting, sculpture, photography, and installation. This jury sat together and reviewed the applications.”
The initiative is in collaboration with BMRCL. “With the traffic we have in the city, the metro is a lifeline running through the city. We have great spaces and great walls outside every metro station. An average Bengalurean keeps coming, moving in and out of the metro. The idea is that art should be a right, not a privilege. Everyone should be able to experience art, participate in it and feel its transformative power. BMRCL has been very generous, coming forward and offering us their space. We also have a few other public walls but a lot of the display will be along the metro line,” she says, signing off.
November 1 onwards. Across the city.
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