MURALI NAGAPUZHA

For bright and vivacious Murali Nagapuzha, art is a way to spread a message, ‘especially among children’. He says, ‘My paintings have familiar images in them – birds, cats, goats, lotus, cows, butterflies, coconut trees. Children enjoy identifying themselves with my paintings. Seeing the children in my paintings play peek-a-boo with nature, they too feel like being one with nature. Children are our future and if they start caring for nature, they have a chance of a brighter future.’

Born and brought up in a village called Nagapuzha in Ernakulam district, amidst lush greenery, it is no wonder that Murali’s works have plenty of green in them. The Malayalam author Basheer and the characters from his stories have been an inspiration for him too.Motivated by the French artist Henri Rousseau, Nagapuzha’s canvasses are based on his own experience and memories of a Kerala where it is green all around. 

Murali Nagapuzha is the recipient of the prestigious Pollock Krasener Foundation Grant.