Artist’s sketches celebrate Chennai’s architecture

Thousands of people who travel through Chennai Central Railway Station on a daily basis might often overlook the beauty of the majestic century-old building designed by architect George Harding. One of the busiest railway stations in South India, the brick-red coloured terminal rose to becoming one of the most prominent landmarks of our city — yet not appreciated enough for its aesthetics. Drawing people’s attention to the intricacy in the design and architecture several such historic buildings, 22-year-old architecture student and artist Salmaan Mohamed has taken to sketching them. Through drawings on a variety of mediums other than paper like coffee cups, cardboard and even bus tickets, the artist is helping people appreciate the architecture of the city, while highlighting the stories behind their existence. From public libraries, temples, railway stations, to churches, the details in his sketches ensure every Chennaiite is transported to the location with just one glance.

“Initially, I began sketching with people’s portraits like most other artists. But, when I decided to pursue a bachelor’s degree in architecture a few years ago, I began sketching the buildings in the city. This allowed me to inspect the buildings closely and learn different construction styles. For the past three years, I have been sitting in front of one of the city’s public buildings every Sunday to sketch it live,” recalls Salmaan.

Temples in Mylapore, Ripon Buildings in Periyamet, the Government Museum in Egmore, and Loyola College Church in Nungambakkam are some of the popular buildings that gave inspiration for the young artist’s sketches. Over the past two years, he has sketched over 50 such buildings, which he shares on his Instagram page. Salmaan is also in the process of getting these drawings published as a book. “Unlike in other cities of the country, I have noticed that we do not have a community of live sketchers. So, I decided to bringout this book hoping to inspire other artists to take up architecture-inspired sketching,” he adds.

Before visiting the buildings, Salmaan does his research on which angle of the structure he wants to highlight, along with the history of the places. “I look for some shade around the building as I spend anywhere between an hour and three hours at the spot. When I began sketching, I used to sit down with my headphones on. Later, I started noticing a lot of passers-by standing around me and complimenting my work. It keeps me motivated even if I’m sitting under the sun on the sunniest of days,” asserts Salmaan.

The artist, who is keen to go on a world tour and travel to cities while creating sketches of architecture, is also working on highlighting some of the not-so-popular buildings of the city, like the age-old houses. In the past, he has travelled to Agra, Delhi, Chandigarh and Kerala to sketch some of their historic structures. “I remember travelling to Agra, eagerly wanting to sketch the iconic Taj Mahal. When the security didn’t allow me to carry my sketch book in, I had to make the sketch on a small piece of paper that I had in my pocket and have kept it as a memory,” he recollects.