November when the organisers were sent to select schools biennale post-cards that had one side of it blank, according to Mary Priscilla Paul, who heads the outreach project. "It was meant for students, from Class VII and above. They were free to sketch and colour any image they wished," she adds. Thus, Marys colleague, artist Kajal Charankattu and her team visited 23 schools which the Kochi Biennale Foundation had short-listed for the programme and gave the students a 45-minute power-point presentation. "We subsequently entrusted each school with a set of biennale post-cards," recalls Kajal. Artist Riyas Komu, who is a co-curator of the biennale, is happy about the success of the scheme. "Our state has enough children who have a talent for painting. Only that most of them arent lucky enough to get groomed. We thought we should give them a chance but without feeding them with preconceived notions," he says. A Mumbai-based Malayali, Komu notes a close view of the postcard paintings will reveal the talent of several students who could make it to the top in the future. "Our endeavour will be a boost for them," he adds. The organisers now plan to send the cards on random to the visitors. "We also plan to give students training in painting," says Komu. PTI UD RC DV BS
