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A crane lifts Delhi-based artist Tarini Sethi 25 feet into the air. Suspended at the top of a Lodhi Colony wall, roller brush in hand, she is at work on what she calls her biggest mural yet. 'This is the biggest wall that I've ever done,' says the 36-year-old, adding that the contemporary fusion piece is a collaboration between Indian and Spanish artists Ishaan Bharat and Suso.
Tarini’s mural features colours from the flags of both countries on a rich green background. While Suso focuses on the background, Tarini and Ishaan are focused on depicting the diversity of Indian culture through multiple cartoons. The result looks similar to Indian characters frolicking in a Spanish-style garden.
Her mural's one of several new works going up as the Lodhi Art Festival returns to mark the 10th anniversary of the Lodhi Art District –India’s first open public art district. You can catch the exhibition any day (for free!) until February 28. While the old murals remain as they are, empty walls get brand new ones.
The theme this year is ‘Dilate All Art Spaces’, with murals designed to interact with the viewer’s movement and perspective. You can expect to see loads of artists – including internationally renowned ones like Elian Chali (Argentina), JuMu (Germany) and Pener (Poland) – at work on the walls of the district.
The festival, which is curated by St+Art India Foundation in collaboration with Asian Paints, will also host a bunch of workshops and panel discussions throughout the month. Check out St+Art Foundation’s Instagram to get the detailed schedule for a series of workshops on painting, stencils, documentations, herbarium making, murals and art history.
The pedestrian-friendly district remains open to the public through the festival. Visitors often pair a walk through the murals with stops at Meharchand Market favourites, like Devan's for coffee, Carnatic Cafe for dosa, and Dumbo Deli for sandwiches.
The history
The district itself was developed between 2015 and 2016, transforming the residential walls of Lodhi Colony into a landmark for public art.
The foundation’s late co-founder, Hanif Kureshi, was once known for anonymously graffiti-tagging Delhi’s walls with the word 'daku' (Hindi for 'bandit') – a gesture that would eventually grow into one of the country’s most visible public art movements.