Thirty-one budding artists of Design School exhibited their paintings themed on the Sangam-era literary masterpiece Tirukkural , as part of the art school’s annual student show, which ended on Monday.
“Most children usually memorise Tirukkural couplets for their exams and then tend to forget them. We felt that symbolising the meaning of these lines through original artwork would create a visual lesson for all,” Ms. T. Nasrath Beagum, managing director, Design School, told The Hindu .
At the three-day event called 'Magical Expressions 2016', which was inaugurated at Rajeswari Hall, Oorvasi Theatre Campus, on Saturday by chief guests Vellamandi N. Natarajan, Minister of Tourism, S. Valarmathi, Minister of Backward Classes/Minorities Welfare and J. Sreenivasan, Deputy Mayor, Tiruchi, each of the young artists presented one painting on a Kural couplet, and three others on a variety of topics.
Some of the more accomplished pieces on display had also had queries from interested buyers, said Ms. Nasrath.
“These 120 paintings were made by the children in tandem with their busy school schedule. It was not easy to find students who could understand the Tirukkural ’s literary and metaphorical meaning at first. Preparing for the show actually motivated many of the children to research the couplets more sincerely. Perhaps schools should include the visual representation of Tirukkural in their art curriculum,” said Ms. Nasrath, who teaches art to 450 students of all age groups in the city.
Among the paintings that stood out was the ‘Tirukkural Malar’ by Muthumeena R.M., Class 9 student of Alpha Wisdom Vidyashram, that spoke about the heroes in our midst.
Taking the examples of Subhashini Mistry, the menial worker whose toil led to the establishment of a hospital for the needy in Hanspukur village near Kolkata and Dashrath Manjhi, the labourer from Gehlaur in Bihar, who carved a path through a hill using just his hammer and chisel, in his village to create an easy access to medical care in the city nearby, Muthumeena said that it was important to appreciate the many people whose hard work and service have shaped our society.
“To inspire media houses to publish more articles on Tirukkural , I have designed my own painting in the style of a newspaper page,” said the student.
B. Rakshana (Class 7, Montfort School) engaged viewers with a detailed still life of straw baskets (acrylic on canvas).
Bhuvaneshwaran G. (Clas 8, Jegan Matha Matriculation Higher Secondary School), Kishore K. (Class 7, Montfort School) and Lalith Harini, (Class 9, St. Joseph’s Anglo-Indian School), were among those whose work caught the eye.
On-the-spot drawing competitions for school students in the city were held in three age categories on Saturday. All the participants received certificates.
“Schools should include the visual representation of Tirukkural in their art curriculum”
