Bengaluru folks get together, give iconic city hotel’s wall a makeover

By Deepti Natarajan Lobo

Art lovers converged to paint a 35-foot-wide wall at the iconic Airlines Hotel. Organised by Creatibeeti, Wall as your Canvas: The Van Gogh Edition sought to present a fresh take on Van Gogh’s legendary Starry Nights to Bengalureans. As cups of piping hot coffee and plates of lip-smacking masala dosas went around, the group of 40 got together in the morning and completed the magnum opus in five-and-a-half hours.

This was one of the several mural painting workshops organised by Bhoomika Ananth, a final-year medical student of Rajarajeshwari Medical College and the founder of Creatibeeti. Already, 27 walls in the city have got a makeover – from government schools to cafes.

“The main concern that people have when they come for our workshops is that they haven’t painted in a long time. But we make it extremely easy for anyone to paint and are more than happy to add a little more colour to every place and everyone’s lives,” says Bhoomika.

“In today’s times, we often get into our own silos and need an outlet to break out of it. Activities like these make us feel like we are part of something bigger. They also dive into inclusivity and let us know that we have access to help and can ask for it at any time,” says Shravanthi Venkatesh, a creative arts therapist.

"The joy of working on a wall is something else. It’s such a huge area and your art is seen by so many people. It’s exhilarating," says Bhoomika Ananth, medical student and founder of Creatibeeti

"Although we had some challenges and self-doubts, we went completely rogue and were emotional once we completed 35-feet-wide wall. The fact that we started off small by painting government schools and left a mark on a place like Airlines just felt great," says Joel David, first-year MBA student

"My profession can be very stressful so I take time out on weekends for art. This is my eighth or ninth wall and the experience has been life-changing as you not only meet new people, but also realise that someone trusts you with a big task and lets you do it. Sketching with 40 others at Airlines and trying to convey the same idea is something else, shares Sindhu, regional south India head of a logistics company