French street artist KASHINK, who was in Kolkata for Wall Art India, shares more about their art form
A few of India’s public walls are once again becoming spaces of dialogue, creativity, and shared imagination as Wall Art India returns for its fifth edition, thanks to the Alliance Française network in India, in collaboration with the Embassy of France in India and Institut Français. The initiative, since 2021, has transformed city walls into open-air galleries — free and accessible to all, deeply rooted in local neighbourhoods, and designed to remain part of the urban landscape long after the festival ends. Kolkata, too, was a part of this initiative as the French street artist KASHINK decked a wall at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI).
KASHINK (who uses the pronouns they/them) defies convention with their vast, vividly coloured and deliberately undressed faces. An artist, performer, and committed feminist, they assert the complete freedom of identity and wear a drawn-on moustache every day as both an artistic statement and a political act. From Paris to major capitals around the world, their flamboyant murals challenge social norms, celebrate diversity and transform public space into a living manifesto for inclusion and equality. We met them at SRFTI on the sidelines of the wall painting. Excerpts:
Tell us a little about the wall art that you have done at SRFTI?
Well, I improvised it while I was painting it. Whenever I am painting a mural, I never know what I am going to do, so it’s very exciting, kind of challenging, but I am used to it since I have been doing it for almost 20 years now. It is colourful for sure, with my signature bold lines and bright colours, and carries a positive and empowering message.
Your murals are usually very colourful. Do you use any specific colour palette?
I usually use a broad palette of warm colours — oranges, pinks, reds, yellows — and also cool colours like blues, greens and purples… basically the rainbow colours, I would say. And I like to put them all together and make them contrasting. Warm and cool go very well together, along with the bright and pastel colours. I like to make the colours communicate with each other to enhance their beauty and energy.
You believe in gender fluidity. But your art speaks a lot about women’s issues and rights. Why is that?
Yes, I like to consider myself gender fluid. My experience growing up was one of a girl, of a woman, so I like to question what is acceptable and explore the definition of what a woman should be like. I like this fluidity that allows me to explore wider perspectives of these definitions of gender norms, how women have a lot of duties but not enough rights. It's very interesting to question all these and be able to share about the different ways of being, the diversity of how one can be. It’s a matter of trying to redefine everything and explore the faces of our own identities.
You have a very signature style of drawing your figures, and they get reflected in your tattoos. Do you also like to sketch your own tattoos?
Well, I don’t sketch them. I like to go with the flow. Sometimes it’s inspired by the artists I like, sometimes it’s just on the go. My tattoos on my legs are like my passport stamps, as I try to get one dedicated to every place I visit.