Going beyond Pink: Artists, transgenders add a dash of colour to Jaipur

Art and culture have always been synonymous with Rajasthan. And this is what a vintage car restorer and an art enthusiast from Jaipur wants to preserve.

In a first-of-its-kind project, walls, automobiles and metro stations in Jaipur are being painted with all kinds of colours, showcasing the rich heritage of the state and spreading awareness on social issues.

The Cartist initiative has invited 22 national and international artists to create artwork on the walls of the metro stations on different themes.

Cartist launched itself by getting a 100 auto-rickshaws painted by local artists in 2015.

“I started the initiative with the main motive to promote young artists and give them a platform to showcase their talent. This, and my love for vintage cars and culture motivated me to take up the project,” says Himanshu Jangid, founder of Cartist.

Jangid has been a vintage car restorer for the last one decade and is the owner of United Restorations, a company dealing in restoration of vintage and classic cars.

Art festival

A Cartist Automobile Art Festival is being held in Jaipur from April 12 to 16. It features artwork by 200 aspiring artists and 50 prominent artists from across the country.

The events include scooter and car art, heritage walks across Jaipur, special workshops and nine exhibitions.

“To encourage budding artists, we will display their paintings and artwork on automobiles in exhibitions. We will also give away prizes to the best artwork. Rs 75,000 will be given to the first winner and the second winner will get Rs 25,000,” Jangid said.

Dhruv Mistry, an Indian sculptor, has also joined the initiative. On Thursday, he started painting with other artists.

Mistry also conducted a session for young talent on Saturday.

“Cartist is a worthwhile initiative for youngsters. It sends out a message that art is an important field and should be taken up professionally,” said Mistry. “I am happy to see that someone has managed to bring so many artists under one cover and given them a chance to express themselves.”

Metro stations become the canvas

The initiative to paint the walls of metro stations across Jaipur started on February 28, and is expected to be over by April 28.

Recently, transgenders were roped in to add colour to the Vivek Vihar and New Atish Market metro stations where artist Poornima Sukumar and team, who do community-based artwork in geometric design, completed the wall art for spreading awareness about the transgender community.

Artist Akhlaq Ahmed from Delhi and artist Shrikant Ranga and team from Bikaner completed the work at Ram Nagar metro station. Ahmad created a wall mural in an abstract form with a quote saying ‘We love Jaipur.’

Artist Kahili Young from London, who worked at the Shyam Nagar metro station, said, “My artwork is an effort towards global activism. With my art, I bring you a fierce voice for earth conservation and protection efforts.”

The art so far

Artwork, paintings, and installations have been put up at different locations, such as Jaipur International Airport, Albert Hall, Hawa Mahal and Jal Mahal since 2015.

In 2016 and 2017, Cartist was an art partner during the Jaipur Literature Festival where work based on auto art and literature was showcased in an open-air art gallery.

Cartist rejuvenated the three main railway stations with distinct themes last year in partnership with Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation and Indian railways.

About 14 artists showcased their talent at the stations with ‘Kathputli art’ and ‘Jogi art’ - an art form that hinges around dots and lines – with messages on cleanliness and the need to preserve tribal art.