Margao.
Dattaraj Naik:This mural is on a building-wall next to a
school. When I got this project from St+art India Foundation I visited the
school and observed their activities for a while. When I came up with this art,
my idea was to show how students try to keep a balance between their academic
studies and their favorite sport, or any other hobbies for that matter. This
mural is a project initiated by St+art India foundation and supported by FC Goa
HC: Could you tell us a little bit about your art background and
career?
DN:I have completed my
graduation from Goa College of Arts, Panjim. I later moved to Baroda to pursue
my Master’s in Applied. I now work in Delhi as an illustrator with Guerrilla
Art & Design. I also work as a street-artist and a freelancer.
HC: It’s believed that artists choose those topics which they
feel strongly about or is close to their heart. So do you have any fond
memories of football which helped in coming up with this idea?
DN: Of-course! Ever since
childhood, I have always loved playing football. I have played football
throughout my schooling years and have also been a part of the college football
team. Free-styling had fancied me a lot. I still take out time in Delhi to come
out and play for a while. It’s a sport that I can relate to in my life very
easily and hence it featured in my art.
HC: Talking about your art-work, do the color choices specify
anything?
DN:Choosing colors for
your art-work plays a pivotal role. We artists choose colors based on different
aspects that include which ones are more eye-catching. In this piece, along
with this logic, I have used Orange and Blue colors to depict the FC Goa
emblem.
HC: Could you share with us what inspires you about FC Goa, any
proud moment?
DN: Football has always
fancied us Goans. But there are many among us, including me, who do not know
about every football team that is there, or every match that is being played.
But after the formation of the FC Goa team, it’s a pleasure to see all goans
uniting as one in support of the state’s team.
HC: Is there any specific message that you want to convey
through your mural?
DN: I see that today’s
younger generation are so consumed by the digital media. It seems like kids
playing out on the grounds is a thing of the past. Also, children are
pressurized to be so good at academics, that they don’t have the luxury of time
to spend on their hobbies. So, I want to tell the children of today to please
find the time and follow your heart. And I request parents to encourage their
kids in their chosen sport and hobby.
HC: How did you venture into Applied Arts and take it up as a
career?
DN:Well, it had never
been my plan. I was good at drawing during my early years of school but I soon
gave it up. I would be more interested in outdoor activities and sports. After my
higher-secondary education, on insistence by a friend, I just happened to join
a tutorial batch that was being taken to guide students to get into the art
college. I still didn’t have any plan to have a career in arts, but the
encouragement that I received from the classes motivated me to go forward in
arts, and from there, there was never looking back. Moving to Baroda was an
up-ward learning curve. I got the opportunity to explore several different
mediums of art practices. That’s when I learnt and started liking the concept
of street-art.
HC: What is it that you like about the street-art form?
DN: Street-art is a form
of art-work that involves people. It aims at making art accessible to a wider
audience. Street-art, like its name suggests, can be found within the cities we
live in. It kind-of makes art available for everyone.
HC: Who is your favorite street-artist?
DN: My favorite Indian
street-artists would be Daku and Sameer Kulavoor. If you ask international
artists, it would be Banksy and Shepard Fairey.
HC: What do you think about the trend of street-art murals
coming up in India?
DN:The St+art India
foundation is one of the very few foundation, if not the only, that works on
art projects in public spaces. I think people are still not completely aware
and accustomed to street-art right now. Of-course it’s getting there, and
people in Goa and a few other cities of Delhi and Mumbai have seen street-arts
come up. But it’s still a fresh concept in India.
About the concept:
Delhi based artist of
Goan origin, Dattaraj has painted one of Goa’s biggest football themed murals
which depicts the state’s love for football through the eyes or rather
aspirations of a young child. A multidisciplinary artist hailing from the state
itself, Naik’s mural features a boy sitting at a study table dreaming about
playing football.
This
mural represents a common situation amongst the school children in Goa who try
to keep a balance between academic studies and their favourite sport, football.
It brings forth the dreams and aspirations of a young child who wants to get
out on to the field but is held back due to studies and other circumstances.
The mural also sees a Gaur in the background which represents the club FC Goa,
which represents Goa in the ISL. FC Goa and Forca Goa Foundation have supported
the art project and are committed to the growth of not just football as a sport
but also towards the culture of football.