A concrete impression

Graffiti artiste Anpu Varkey is beautifying facades across the country, one wall at a time.

The buildings in Lodhi Colony of Delhi bear a distinct look since February this year. The standard yellow and dull-pink walls have given way to pink dahlias, ochre trees, Kathakali dancers and even Gond art.

Demanding your attention amongst these is Anpu Varkey’s mural, Lava Tree at block no. 14, which resembles burning autumn leaves. A regular in Delhi’s graffiti scene, she has been using concrete walls as her canvas for more than a decade.

Her brush with street art started in Bremen, Germany where she shared the studio with artistes, clowns, street writers, who actively expressed art on concrete walls.

Moving to Delhi only gave her the much-needed fillip. The expansive empty walls and “the illegality” attached with it drew her to it. And the harsh sun, the shaky ladder, a few confused faces, the dust, dehydration aren’t a hindrance to the artiste. Anpu says, “There’s no limit to size, and audience on the streets. What you leave behind as an artiste matters. There is no aesthetic that one needs to stick to while on the street — anything and everything is permissible. I’ve never looked at the streets in the same manner ever since.” Extension Khirkee, the first art festival in Delhi, also marked her debut as an artiste.

Being a graffiti artiste wasn’t a profession that featured in Anpu’s list of interest. The Baroda School of Art student aspired to be a studio painter but the lack of interest from patrons or worthy galleries made her stash away her paraphernalia. She says, “My career as a studio painter was short-lived. I failed as an artiste. Through a serendipitous string of events, I started working on the streets and organised festivals in Kochi and Delhi.” Anpu admits that it was “choosing this unconventional field and “having departed from a narrow minded view on art”, made her understand the creative skill.

Before she gets down to painting a mural, Anpu walks around the location to get a sense of the place. The street life, the wall texture, the colour of the building, is taken into account before picking up the wide paintbrush. She says, “I even take people’s requests if it is a public building because ultimately, it is those people who will live with the art. My work should settle in with the adjoining concrete building, just like how it was before the art.”

Her project, Nine Tails, at Egmore station in Chennai has been among the most satisfying projects for Anpu because of the dialogue that the city’s people initiated with her. If someone narrated the story of a cat to her, some others told her about which places to visit in Chennai. She says, “I even titled it Nine Tails because a man told me a tale about a cat with nine tails. It was probably their way of making conversation and participating in the project. In a station where people are always in a rush, I was glad to have exploited that energy.”

Anpu constantly experiments with either the painting technique or designing to challenge herself creatively. Her murals are completed in nothing less than four days. She says, “The minute I think I know it all, the process becomes tedious or boring. I like to give myself a time constraint. I work fast and with purpose so that the project is never a chore that I have to complete.” Having been influenced by the expressionists, her work witnesses free flowing strokes. “I’m more interested in creating works that can visually despair the viewer. Each of my murals stems from a mood,” she adds.

Does she have a design philosophy or word of advice for other aspiring graffiti artistes She says, “Work hard and stay curious — your work should make an impression.”