Shergarh: Those who came out of their houses owing to some unavoidable reasons Friday were happy to see some portions of roads here in Shergarh block in Ganjam district being transformed into canvasses and beautiful paintings, featuring messages on COVID-19 awareness.
Like all, the lockdown to contain the spread of deadly virus has also hit artists hard. With no exhibitions across the nation, artists are also left with no work. However, during this lockdown, videos of artists being busy at easel stands in their studios are streaming into the social media.
But the artists of Shergarh Chitrakar Sangha here decided to do something different. They came out and transformed the entire stretch at Shergarh Chari Chowk, Tini Chowk and Bazaar Chowk into their canvasses.
All the paintings carry messages on coronavirus. They urge people to be at home and protect themselves and their families.
Local residents heaped praise on these artists. “Starting from government to private organisations, all are doing their bits to create awareness among people. And in this fight against the killer virus, our artists are also not behind. They have done a wonderful job,” they said.
When contacted, the artists said, “There are some NGOs that are manufacturing masks and distributing them among people. Some are distributing cooked foods to stranded people and labourers. Some are feeding animals like monkeys and stay dogs and cows. One day an idea of doing something for the society struck us and we decided to create awareness among people through art.”
PNN
