: These days, artists from the Bindu-Art-School at Bharathapuram near Chengalpattu are regularly invited to give talks on positive thinking at corporate offices. Not too long ago, they led their life in abandonment and social stigma, because they were afflicted with leprosy. Seeing their confidence and happiness gives immense joy to multimedia artist and Austrian Werner Dornik, initiator of the school.
The art school established in 2005 at a lepers’ colony has since been holding regular exhibitions of art works in India and abroad, including at the Austrian Parliament and European Parliament. The artists’ work, ‘From Pain to Paint’ is currently being shown at Maison Colombani, Alliance Francaise till March 26.
Mr. Dornik has been associated with leprosy care ever since his backpacking trip to India in 1977, when he came across a leper colony in Varanasi. His ‘hippie’ ideals clashed with the ground reality of what he had seen, he says.
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He initiated the school with social activist Padma Venkataraman, daughter of former President R. Venkataraman. Mr. Dornik knew Ms. Venkataraman from Vienna, and of her active involvement in leprosy rehabilitation through the Women’s Indian Association.
For the school to work, the initiators realised they had to provide a stipend to prevent the artists from going back to begging. “They have overcome so much pain in life. I could sense beauty inside them. I asked them to show the world this side of theirs, instead of begging,” says Mr. Dornik. The artists’ community has found happiness in art, with many saying they require fewer medicines now. Their life experiences has given them clarity, an essential element in art, he says.
The artists are between 30 years and 92 years, and Mr. Dorink says it is especially important for those who have been neglected and abandoned most of their life to lead a life of dignity and respect in their twilight years. In fact, many of them now send money to their families who had once abandoned them. The act of being able to give is a ‘psychological’ boost for the artists, he says.
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Self-sustaining model
The art school has been self-sustaining, and does not organise any donation drives. In fact, Mr. Dornik says the very idea of the school has been against the ‘discriminatory’ charity-based system. “I wanted the school to have a balance between giving and taking,” he says.
While the art school has hosted several big name artists for workshops, trainers like Dagmar, Mr. Dornik’s wife, provide guidance while letting the artists develop their own art form without too much interference. The administrators encourage the artists to produce original work, and not copy, he says. Sometimes, they also have to be a little tough. When one of them was found drinking in class, he was sent away. Two years later, the student returned having given up alcohol. The proceeds are divided equally among the students, with 40 percent set aside for materials and administration. A portion is also given to new students at the school.