In an incredibly fun and creative event, students at IISER Pune have managed to paint what could possibly be one of the largest compositions painted in the Warli style.

The goal was to gain entry into the Limca Book of Records, but what was even more exciting to witness is the collective effort put in by over 400 students to complete this task. Of these, about 50 were engaged in sketching and the rest in painting the 2600 feet square feet area of canvas.

With the target of 12 hours to complete the painting, the students set out to work at sunrise. And the venue to lay the canvas was the football field on the campus. The team faced a couple of challenges in the first half of the day such as the field being wet from morning dew and heavy winds blowing as the day progressed, but they persevered and came away with a record-making piece of art in about 11 hours.

Student organizers Divya Singh, Lavanya Lokhande, Prachi Shinde, and Siddhesh Zadey worked for weeks putting this event together which saw over 400 volunteers synergize their efforts toward a coherent composition. Kudos to them all!

The result is a fitting celebration and promotion of the age-old tradition of the Warli tribal art. As is distinctive of the Warli style of painting, the composition on this canvas portrayed the earthy harmony that exists between living beings and nature.

In spite of having been generated by tens of artists in a limited time, the canvas, composed of multiple individual paintings, comes across as a coherent and striking work of art. Credit should go to each one of the students who planned the event for weeks and executed it in a remarkable fashion. And may be also to the viewers who cheered them on and many of who were longing to join in the team to try their hand at some of the motifs were it not for the requirement that students alone could participate.

The event, conducted as part of Karavaan ‘14, the annual cultural festival of IISER Pune, was proposed and organized by the Art Club of IISER Pune and sponsored by Fevicryl Pidilite Industries.
 

-Reported by Shanti Kalipatnapu; Photo Courtesy: Pidilite