Artists take part in an art camp in Puri. Picture by Sarat Patra

Bhubaneswar, Nov. 25: Artists from all over the country have come together to celebrate the bond between art and aesthetics of the seashore at a national art camp in Puri. The camp, which is on at the Youth Hostel in the city, has been organised on the occasion of the ongoing 17th International Puri Beach Festival.

Mostly attended by young artists, the camp also features established painters settled in different parts of the country. Eminent names such as Kishen Soni and Satish Gupta from Rajasthan, Alok Bhowmick from Dehradun with well-known painters such as Birendra Pani, Mukesh Sharma and Kandan G are attending the camp. Contemporary artists from Odisha such as Nari Maharana and Rabindra Sahoo are also a part of the camp.

“Painters from Delhi, Bangalore, various cities in Rajasthan, Dehradun and Tripura are participating in the art camp that features 36 artists. Around 16 artists from the state are also attending the event including seven students from Utkal University of Culture,” said curator of the camp Surya Rath.

The camp was inaugurated on Wednesday by famous painter Jatin Das who also interacted with the participants on the occasion. “We painters must spend time in our villages, each of which has a different tradition and culture. We must highlight these in our works to create something original rather than imitate themes that have been adopted by most artists across the world,” said the veteran artist.

The camp will continue until November 26 after which the works will be exhibited at the beach festival until November 29. Artists are holding interactive sessions everyday at the camp to discuss themes, techniques and the current scenario of art in the country.

The paintings created by each artist will have a reflection of life around the sea shore and will depict elements of the Puri Jagannath Temple.

“I’m really excited about participating in this art camp since there are so many senior artists around who are guiding us at every instance. Moreover, it is a special experience to create a unique contemporary work that has shades from the life of Puri and also involves currently relevant subjects,” Arati Patnaik, a young painting student from Utkal University of Culture.

The camp has been organised by Suvadra Art Gallery and Hotel Association of Puri. “The camp is into its third edition this year. Next year we will invite international artists and hold an even bigger camp,” said Rath.