Giving art a new lease of life

HS Gururaj’s fascination for art led him to enrolling at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, where he obtained a bachelor’s and master’s degree in painting.

Like most upcoming artists anywhere in the world, Gururaj found it hard to make it big in his chosen field; worse still, inadequate funding made it difficult for him to bring many of his ideas to fruition. In early 2009, Gururaj’s tutor informed him of the Robert Bosch Art Grant, given out as part of the Bosch Foundation’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative.

The Bosch Art Grant, now an annual affair, was instituted last year to assist artists from diverse fields to pursue their chosen craft further.

So after a long application process detailing his proposed project — documenting the changing scene of autorickshaw art in the city — Gururaj’s project ‘Auto-Mobile-Art’ was awarded a grant of Rs40,000. This funding helped Gururaj pursue a lifelong dream — an opportunity to study the changing face of autorickshaw art.

“Being an artist myself, I found autorickshaw art intriguing,” says Gururaj who began his documentation in September 2009. “The first phase revolved around existing auto art. I visited auto stands in various localities like Gandhi Nagar, Chamarajapet, Shivajinagar and City railway station,” says Gururaj, adding, “I noticed that with time the sole focus of rickshaw drivers had narrowed down to earning a living and the number of autos carrying attractive art works had substantially declined.

” While tracking the evolution of rickshaw art, Gururaj also noticed, for instance, that Kannada thespians such as Dr Rajkumar and Vishnuvardhan had made way for Bollywood stars like Sanjay Dutt.

“Advertisements, a new development, have begun to supplement the drivers’ income,” elaborates Gururaj. While most auto-art used to be painted earlier, today stickering has become more common.

Yet, Gururaj says it’s still easy to spot autorickshwas adorned with varied images: names of family members, lovers, gods and goddesses, landscapes, birds, animals, quotes in Kannada, little poetry, display of love-failure the list goes on.

Autorickshaw art, according to Gururaj, is an extension of a driver’s personality. So, after four months of research, he showcased his work — a compilation of 55-60 photographs and two videos — at 1, Shanti Road on January 21.

Sonia Jose’s ‘A Place Called Home’, is yet another fascinating art project supported by Bosch in which Jose predominantly uses photography to display the changing social and architectural milieu of one of Bangalore’s oldest localities, Jayanagar.

“Being a resident of Jayanagar, the rapid changes were disturbing. Old independent homes are torn down to make way for multi-storeyed commercial buildings or newer houses. I saw the neighbourhood in a state of flux. My aim was to document the changes and preserve some fragments of its older identity through photographic visual documentation.”

Jose, who studied fine art at Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology, has been working on this for seven months now and sees it as an ongoing project, which she’ll continue to explore. She’ll soon exhibit her work at Tasveer Art Gallery.

By supporting art projects such as these, Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Limited (RBEI), the software subsidiary of Bosch in India, not only seeks to assist artists but also help catalogue the city’s heritage.

Muthamma Acharya, head of CSR at RBEI, says, “Art reflects an evolving community, but lack of funds often becomes an impediment for artists. So by pitching in with financial aid we not only help upcoming artists but also plan to document the cities in which Bosch offices are located.”

Currently, Bosch is doling out art grants especially for artists from Bangalore and Coimbatore — the two Indian cities they operate out of. Further, the popular Western concept of engineering-as-art prompted Bosch to aid art, which is just one of the activities that Bosch supports in India.

“92% of Bosch’s profits are pumped into the Bosch Foundation, a trust that supports a variety of programmes, while the rest goes to the Bosch family,” says Acharya. Apart from art grants, Bosch engages in charity and philanthropic work and community projects, too.

Bosch, which gave out Rs8.5 lakh as art grants last year, is currently inviting submissions from artists this year too.

The grant is available to artists from Bangalore and Coimbatore only. Anybody below 30 years of age is eligible to apply for it and the last day to submit applications is April 30.