Kerala Tourism to Spread Arteria Fresco Works to other Districts: Minister

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
The Kerala government will consider beautifying city spaces in all districts by bringing them under the purview of the “Arteria Fresco project” whose third phase is under implementation in the capital city, Tourism Minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas said today.

He was speaking to mediapersons after monitoring the artwork at the Palayam Underpass in the state capital.

“The idea is not just to deck up the looks of our cityscapes, but gift a positive energy to their visitors,” Riyas added.

The colourful images at the Palayam Underpass were being done as part of the 2015-initiated Arteria, which is a Tourism Department initiative that seeks to render the city walls with paintings by renowned artists.

Being implemented in coordination with the District Tourism Promotion Council, Arteria has been seeing the conversion of walls and fences of public, private and cooperative ownership into canvases of artistic creativity in the past six years.

The project’s first two phases (in 2015 and ’16) envisaged 25-odd paintings by as many renowned artists, gaining the vitality to change the face of the historical city. Arteria succeeded in completing a work by the renowned K.G. Subramanyan (1924-2016) without the supervision of the Kerala-born master.

In January this year, the paintings under Arteria were brightened up after the works had dulled amid the rainy spells and summer seasons in the past half a decade.

Currently, a third phase (2021) of Arteria plans murals along Akkulam bypass at Kuzhivila Junction, St Joseph’s School and the Museum besides at the 2005-completed Palayam Underpass.

The current 3rd phase of the project features around 20 graffiti artists, and their team members from across the state.