“We are always thinking about preserving our history and our centuries-old art, but what about the artists today? What legacy are we going to leave behind?” These questions frequently occur to Sudeep Balla, 31, a 2D visual artist, who has been working as a full-time artist since 2014, the year he got his bachelor’s degree in arts.

 

“As an artist, it is important for me to balance my artistic and financial freedoms,” he says. Balla, who is passionate about doing graffiti, mural and street art, is currently busy designing a restaurant wall in Bhaktapur. His commissioned work has a fixed deadline, a fixed canvas and a fixed plan. He was involved in painting the famous mural of Labim Mall and in many other public artworks around Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur.

 

“For commissioned work, you mostly work on someone else’s ideas. And as much as I like art, I would rather spend my time on my own ideas. The problem with that is there is no deadline. You need rigorous discipline to finish a work that you do for yourself because it feels like ‘I have time. I will eventually do it.’ And yet, the work that I do for myself are the ones I value the most.” He says that is where he finds his artistic freedom.

 

Balla feels people are now more accepting of art in all its forms, and public interest and involvement has increased since he started out. “I do not even want respect but I should get to work the way I want and my art should find a space in this world.” He says his artist friends feel the same way.

 

Balla, a Bhaktapur native, wishes there was more investment too with greater interest. He says local people and municipality are not interested in financially supporting the kind of art he and some of his friends want to do in Bhaktapur. “We are our own support for now. In the time we spend finding investors for a project, we can finish a mural,” he says.

 

Balla is in a three-member group “Devotee” that want to improve the art scene of Bhaktapur. “If each of us contributes just Rs 5,000, we have Rs 15,000 already.” Because his art is aimed at somehow adding to the historic value of Bhaktapur, he doesn’t want financial investment to be an obstacle.

 

“When local people see the impact that art brings to the community, they come forward to support us,” says Balla. He says when they start a work in a community, the locals invariably say, “Why is this even necessary? You are coming into our space and changing the way it was.” But when their work is finished, the locals realize its true value and they become so happy that they often invite the artists to their homes.

 

Balla also cites vandalism as a major problem for artists. “There are people who write and carve randomly on public walls and trees. They may destroy my art as well,” Balla says. “We need to respect art. If there was no vandalism, there would be more space for art.”

 

Another problem with artists in Bhaktapur, Balla adds, is their lack of marketing knowhow. He says artists should learn to self-manage their Instagram and Facebook pages so as to increase the value of their art.

 

“Art of Bhaktapur is similar to apples of Mustang. Outside dealers go to Mustang, take the juicy apples and sell them where they are needed for profit. A similar thing is happening to artworks of Bhaktapur. There are many artists but with little knowledge of marketing,” Balla explains. He asserts it is increasingly important to know the value of your work and how to market it.

 

And where does he draw his inspiration from? “Our artworks can be traced back to our experiences in childhood. Similarly we learn from other artists.” Balla says he feels dissatisfied with his work if he cannot show on canvas what he has in mind.

 

“I did exhibitions in college. As a part of my course work, I used to spend up to six months working on ideas for my paintings and getting them on canvas.” In class, students were asked to figure why they were interested in doing a particular art, what form it would eventually take and which colors it would encompass.

 

“An artist is expected to explain the story behind each color and the reason for making the artwork that size.” He says some students cried during the learning process because of the sheer pressure. “But once you get the hang of things, you have artistic freedom. Nobody can question your work after that and even if they do, you will have answers”.