Art for a sop

Thota Laxminarayana doesn’t just share his surname with an eminent artist (Thota Vaikuntam) but he also paints just as brilliantly. And much like Vaikuntam, he too creates memories from his village on the canvas. Now, putting his talent to good use, a series of the artist’s work will be put up for sale, proceeds of which will go towards the mid-day meal scheme for children from the Ranga Reddy district.

“I was approached by the organisers of a crowdfunding platform. They brought a very interesting concept and I was blown away by it. If my art can help fill a few stomachs, I will gladly oblige,” says Laxminarayana.

The artist was approached in November, after which he started working on the paintings. “For this show, I made 17 artworks, out of which seven have already been sold. Since they are moderately priced between Rs 9,900 and Rs 30,900, they make for affordable art,” he explains.

This campaign is supported by the Rural Development Foundation and money collected from this will be used for the mid-day meals of 50 school kids. “There are several places in the state where the mid-day meal scheme is not able to provide enough food and that’s why organisations like this are stepping in to help,” he explains.

For this project, one can go online, check out the artwork and buy it. “Once they select the work and pay the money, the art will be sent to them after the campaign is done,” says Laxminarayana,  who shifted to Hyderabad recently. After living in Nirmal for over 37 years, he picked up the Nirmal art form. “I learnt from one of the best Nirmal artists, Narsingi. After I picked up the art, I went on to learn more from the tribals of that area. This training shaped my artwork. After that, I started using it in my work with a mix of contemporary art and that’s what my work is all about,” he informs.