Asian Paints unveils the ‘Asian Paints Art House’ at Mumbai Urban Art Festival

Asian Paints and St+art India Foundation unveil their one-of-a-kind project, called 'Asian Paints Art House' at the Mumbai Urban Art Festival (MUAF) along with the exclusive preview of ‘Illusions’ which is a part of the Sassoon Dock Art Project. The endeavour also witnessed the announcement of ‘Silver Escapade’ as the 2023 Asian Paints Colour of the Year.

As one of the premier creations at MUAF, Asian Paints Art House was designed to represent a node in the ocean. Since Sassoon Dock has a visceral connection to the ocean, and is witnessing a new sort of gathering of culture, art and people, our aim was to design a maelstrom that pulls together currents in the Art House, creating an energy vortex. It was created using waste, debris, upcycled fabrics, and other bits and pieces found around the dock. The Art House will also consider what a ‘home’ can be, inspired by creative living and modular design. The Art House also incorporates the Colour of The Year – Silver Escapade in very interesting ways. 

Sassoon Dock Art Project - Illusions, on the other hand, reflects on some of the complexities of our transactional reality, by proposing alternative, fluid, and expansive views. It is open for public viewing from January 13th to 22nd February. 

The Asian Paints Colour of the Year 2023, ‘Silver Escapade’, was announced at the launch, revealing a shade evocative of time travel and technology, and it is also the colour of child craft, wellness, and auspicious new beginnings in India, a hue of hope, festivities, and glamour. UK artist Steve Messam took the colour and created an installation that perfectly encapsulates the ethos of the colour.

The opening of the Art House also saw Asian Paints and St+Art India Foundation drop 5 NFTs for the first time created by visual artist Amrit Pal Singh.

He has created ‘Toy Faces’ a collection of portraits driven by nostalgia and childlike wonder. Toys are objects reminiscent of an extraordinary limitless time when the word cynical wasn't part of your vocabulary. The collection celebrates individuals and characters throughout history and fictional stories to remind you of how they inspired you when you read about them for the first time. Some are still your heroes, and some don't seem that impressive anymore, but for a moment, they all push you to do better, and Toy Faces is about revisiting that feeling. Over the last two years, Amrit has created several Toy Faces, and its signature style is like a canvas to him. For MUAF he extended this canvas to five individual artists, resulting in a playful collaboration celebrating various styles and mediums. Some of the NFTs also feature the Asian Paints Colour of The Year 2023 – Silver Escapade. 

Speaking on the launch, Mr. Amit Syngle, Managing Director & CEO, Asian Paints Ltd. said, “We are proud to unveil the ‘Asian Paints Art House’ and the 2023 Colour of the Year at the Mumbai Urban Art Festival. We are thrilled for the public to see what has been created at Sassoon Dock, representing Mumbai City, its art and culture, in a way that Mumbai may have never witnessed or experienced before. Illusions, is another landmark project we’ve launched at Sassoon Dock, adding to our collective vision of celebrating Mumbai city and its people. I am also very excited for the NFTs that have being curated for the festival with a tinge of Colour of the Year – Silver Escapade. A call out to the St+Art India Foundation for co-curating the Mumbai Urban Art Festival & building onto our long-time partnership. A special mention to the Mumbai Port Authority for their support in making MUAF a possibility 

Asian Paints and St+art India Foundation have been collaborating on a collective vision of ‘beautifying public spaces’ and ‘democratizing art’ for 8 years now. This year, in their most formidable project, Asian Paints and St+art India Foundation launched the 3-month long Mumbai Urban Art Festival (MUAF) in the city. Mumbai Urban Art Festival is taking on a city scale endeavour including landmark murals, experiential exhibitions and immersive installations across several locations.