Art
Delhi’s Mandi Metro Station Adorned With Punjab’s
Phulkari Art
NEWS REPORT
The otherwise solemn looking walls of a Delhi metro station have come alive with a riveting tale of Phulkari.
It’s an effort to bring art to the public spaces, to the common man, to the commuter in a hurry to catch the train. It’s a move to break the monotony of an otherwise solemn looking local station, and play a story in pictures.
A story that tells the tale of Punjab’s art of Phulkari, weaves its genesis and journey in mesmeric fuschias, fiery reds, flaring orange, striking blues and pleasant greens. And the Punjabi conceptual brand ‘1469’ - the world renowned Sikh and Punjabi gift stores - is more than eager to thread it together.
Under an arrangement made between the Indian Habitat Centre (IHC) and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the two have agreed to work together to, inter-alia, promote the cause of bringing art in the domain of the common public. With that objective, DMRC has allotted to IHC exhibition spaces for display of art works at the Mandi House Metro Station.
1469 has been allotted this exhibition space for the next three months at the Mandi House Metro Station. The exhibition is called ‘The Story of Phulkari: Journey through Punjab’.
Four translights celebrate this traditional art and craft of Punjab, one that connects the past and present, and has been for ages the metaphor for women’s voices of Punjab.
The spectacular collection of installations come from their annual fair, The Mela Phulkari, editions One to Four, alongwith highlights of 1469‘s many creative endeavours. As many as 20 hoardings of 48 by 36 inches weave a colorful story.
In the past, Punjabi women wove their dreams and aspirations, their desires and realities, on cloth. The fabric was hand woven and the embroidery lovingly executed.
Originating from Gulkari in Central Asia, by the time Phulkari found its home in Punjab, it had transformed itself though many avatars and established its own unique identity.
Original specimens of the art from the 1469 archives are now displayed for the everyday commuter to behold and appreciate.
January 30, 2018