Circles and squares ripple with wavelets. maze ball The word “ah” is drawn in Arabic calligraphy. And many other shapes. All of these are made of white chalk on the sidewalk filled with papers – manhole included.
what is this? Artworks? Secret codes? Symbols left by a lost civilization? These indeterminate patterns cover a corner yard of the traffic circle Mandi House in central Delhi.
On this sunny afternoon busy people walk these chalk drawings without even glancing at them. A guard on leave from work in a nearby building has lunch on the sidewalk. He has no idea who or what people are behind these drawings. However, he rushes to give his opinion – “it has no meaning.” But then, in the circle of the Mandi House there are no less than two rock-like carvings pinned to the side of the road whose meaning may seem unclear to many of us.
The truth is that the artworks currently on display in the galleries of Triveni Kala Sangam, just a few steps away, are also all a mystery and an abstraction.
Soon, scrap collector Man Singh appeared with a bag on his shoulder. He said in a conspiratorial whisper: “These drawings were drawn by an educated man.” Achilles, a nearby public restroom worker, sheds more light on the mysterious artist. “He always wears suit pants.”
The designs catch the attention of a passerby. Amrita Chauhan looks fascinated, saying, “Mandi’s house is full of interesting people.” She notes that being a theater district, “the area is teeming with artists and actors, and perhaps someone decided to use the land as their canvas.”
It is not uncommon for artists to discreetly display their work in public without revealing their identity.
Last year, the Internet was buzzing with the sight of a monolithic metal column erected by an unknown person in the remote red sandstone valleys of Utah in the US. Could this Mandy House man be a similar artist? One wonders whether this work will fade due to the harsh climate of Delhi or the survival, covered with the trappings of the coming seasons.
On further investigation, the discovery is made. Under the bush that surrounded the square lay half a dozen chalk.
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