This city duo revives ‘Art for Art’s Sake’

CHENNAI: In an always bustling city where ambition and perfection drive life at a frenetic pace, two friends, Bianca Joseph and Harshitha Murali, have carved out a space for people to shy away from their monotonous life and take a breather. For them, art is not just about the aesthetic result but the journey itself, on how it is being created. Inspired by the timeless philosophy of “Art for Art’s sake,” the duo has embarked on a journey to reignite the spark of child-like creativity within our community.

Bianca, an artist and psychologist, and Harshitha, a writer, share a bond forged over 14 years of friendship, where art has been their steadfast companion through life’s ups and downs. Harshitha says, ‘We’ve worked with each other on school projects, volunteered together for nonprofits, and helped conduct other events in the city. We have a track record of working very well together. Bianca is a trained artist and her expertise as a counseling psychologist helps us bring in art therapy elements to the workshop.”

Their vision for an event centered on the pure joy of artistic expression took shape as they observed a gap in the current art workshop scene in Chennai. “Instead of focusing solely on instruction, technique and skills, we envisioned our workshop, Planned Accidents, to be a space for people to eliminate inhibition, to come together and reconnect with a habit that was once intuitive as a kid to all of us, to just create art, as is,” says Bianca.

Their first workshop was met with unexpected diversity, drawing participants of all ages and backgrounds into a shared experience of creativity and community. Encouraged by the feedback and the desire for more, Bianca and Harshitha decided to continue their mission.

Choosing the Art Kin Centre as their venue was a natural fit, with its founder Anahata Sundarmurthy embodying the spirit of artistic freedom and expression. On the art industry in Chennai Anahata says, “I’ve been working in the art industry for over 10 years with top galleries, they are wonderful spaces. But they have a particular reason and sect of people that they cater to. They are usually not the places that the general public go. Although it’s not inherently a negative thing, it reduces the accessibility of art. Aesthetics are everywhere, we are drawn to specific colours and shapes intuitively.”

Together, the three create an ‘art playground’ in the words of Harshitha, where participants are encouraged to explore a wide range of mediums, from traditional paints to unconventional found and sourced objects, in a true celebration of artistic experimentation. Harshitha says, “We want it to be a mix of different art materials and other crazy objects that one wouldn’t usually pick to create or use to explore different art styles.”

True to Anahata’s words, the workshop urged the participants to gravitate towards the art supplies that called out to them. Sunaina, a participant shares, “Loved the freeing aspect of the workshop, we could choose the medium that intrigued us.” Another participant, Keerthy recalls, "Went to a workshop as a kid where they made us work with charcoal. I saw charcoal here and got super excited, so I wanted to do something with where it all started.” Shilpa Agarwal, an ex-journo exclaims, “The workshop was a much-needed experience for me to remember what it’s like to enjoy a solo date, see new faces, hear nuggets of other lives, indulge in art like a child. I also found it interesting that after initial hesitation a group dynamic can also be a place where we can be creative together and individually.”

As they look to the future, Bianca and Harshitha envision their workshops becoming a regular fixture in the community, offering a sanctuary for self-expression and connection in a world that often feels disconnected. In their unwavering commitment, Bianca Joseph and Harshitha Murali are not only planning to conduct more workshops soon but also have their sights set on expanding their vision to Bangalore.