Art campaign hopes to raise awareness on endangered lakes

 To raise awareness about the endangered lakes in the City, many artistes, both amateur and professional, came together under one roof on Saturday. They made art works reflecting the state of water bodies and their ecology on the Sankey tank premises.

The campaign, 'Ripples' by Art Matters saw about 100 art students from various colleges such as Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat, Bangalore University and Kala Mandir, among others taking part. They made paintings depicting the present condition of lakes, effects of encroachment and the future course of action.

About 30 professional artists also painted alongside the art students. Shivaprasad K Achar, Convenor, Art Matters, said: “Lakes are the ecosystems which support the urban areas to maintain an ecological balance. It is time to act before things go out of our hand. With regard to this, we held an awareness activity for the first time. We will soon exhibit the paintings made by the students and professional artists among citizens on a public platform.”

Film director T S Nagabharana, who presided over the programme, gave away awards to ten selected art students and three professional artists for creating excellent paintings with meaningful messages.

Meanwhile, students and artists who participated with enthusiasm, shared their experience of taking part in the event with a social cause. Neeta M S, a student of Chitrakala Parishat, said that it was a refreshing experience for her.

She said: “Lakes are becoming victims of building encroachment and it is important to protect them for the ecological balance.”  The painting by Kanthraj, a professional artist, depicting housing on the lakes and also water as a distant dream in the future, grabbed many eyeballs.