BHUBANESWAR: A national flag represents the essence of a nation’s culture. Its sight is an occasion to evoke national pride. With 16 nations set to fight it out at the “new colosseum” of hockey, the boundary walls of Kalinga Stadium were brushed in colours of flags of various nations under the Street Art and Mural Project (STAMP).
STAMP, a beautification drive of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), is turning out to be a successful one with the latest initiative under its belt. Led by visual artist Gopal Krushna Rath and his team of 30 professional artists, students and artist volunteers, the entire area resembles a mini “hockey world’’ with the profile images of captains of the 16 participating nations.
“We have taken up the themes of 16 national flags as an element of the background colour on the boundary walls of the stadium complex. These murals have also been painted on the opposite walls of the stadium, starting from Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam Kalyan Mandap and till the entry gate of New AG Colony,’’ said Rath.
Rath’s team consists of professional artists from New Delhi. They have participated in this unique initiative to create professional images with local professionals and students. Anjan Patra, Om Pritee and Manoj Choudhary, who are all residents of New Delhi, are thrilled to make their mark in this offbeat initiative.
Patra said, “I am thrilled to be able to contribute towards a World event. It would be no exaggeration to say that the mega sports event would put Odisha in the world map of sports. The choice of theme for these murals is out of the box. Painting the colours of various nations would instill a sense of hope in players as well as supporters.’’
Rath sincerely hopes that the team of dedicated painters can complete portraits of all the 16 captains by Monday. The portraits of seven captains have been done thus far. The main issue that the artists face is that of glare during daytime. Therefore, most of the work is done at night. The artists have developed a practice of dining together from local eateries as this would strengthen the bond between them.
Rath, a master’s degree holder in Visual Arts from Utkal University of Culture, had also contributed immensely at the same location last year during the Asian Athletic Championships. A seasoned artist with a delicate touch with the brush, his works are also seen in art collections of RPG Group of Industries, New Delhi and Bhubaneswar, Sutra Foundation in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, IIT Kharagpur, Utsha Foundation, Bhubaneswar and many other private collections in India and abroad. He has also conducted shows in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Nigam Patra, a photographer and art enthusiast said, “Due to the fast approaching deadline, we have stepped up the pace of our work. The entire area resembles an international sports arena; the wall paintings by STAMP artists are making the walls of the structure come alive.”