Can’t buy it? Rent it!

If you can’t afford a car, you rent a taxi by the mile and minute. If you can’t afford a flat, you rent one by the month. It is a fairly universal concept, but one that’s not been applied to art. Especially original art. At least, not until Rasana Bharadwaj put her idea into practice two years ago. Now, she’s beautifying Mumbai’s houses and offices on a semiannual basis, allowing art lovers to fill spaces on their walls without creating a hole in their pocket. (Click here to view photo feature )

The name of her company, ‘Art per wall’, also corresponds to a ratio which she’s doing her best to achieve.

Though she says the experience has so far been great, and that people have ended up really liking the idea, she arrived at her current success through a significant leap of faith, propelled by little more than her own confidence in the concept.

“I started with a survey that included approximately 1,000 people. I wanted to know for sure whether or not anybody wanted to have paintings on their walls.”

Survey said…

'“Rarely. We don’t have a spare wall, and we don’t need art.'”

Undeterred, Mrs Bharadwaj continued on her quest to make original, authentic  art available to people in the easiest, and cheapest, manner possible. She starts by contacting potential clients. When they evince an interest in her proposition, she arranges a presentation, which involves a display of some of the art.

Clients who are convinced, usually leave the selection up to her. Occasionally, they volunteer their preferences.

“There are a few people who love abstracts in their offices,” she says. “Others prefer subtle colours in their homes.” And Mrs Bharadwaj, who holds a bachelor degree in fine arts from GD Arts, Pune, accommodates their requests. The art she chooses depends on the clients, their preferences and their environment.

The artists she works with give her a wide range to choose from. She offers abstract art, figurative art, landscapes, sketches, black-and-white paintings, and portraits. The artists are a diverse group as well. Some are from Pune, some from Mumbai, and a few from Delhi. Achyut Pallav is a renowned calligrapher. Krishna Pulkundwar is a professor at Sir JJ School of Arts. Another accomplished artist she works with is Mr Chandwadkar.

Mrs Bharadwaj can’t deliver Kareena Kapoor and Shah Rukh Khan to dance in your living room, but she sure can set the scene for it — in the Hindi movie Don, when Shah Rukh and Kareena dance to Yeh mera dil in the hotel room, the paintings on the walls are all Chandwadkar originals.

There are about 20 artists signed up with her in all. Some hold degrees, others don’t. What they have in common is their wealth of experience in their special field of art and the quality of their work.

“Their work is awesome. They have practised and practised, and have reached where they are now,” Mrs Bharadwaj says.

If a client wants something she doesn’t have, she will see that it’s made.

“When a client approaches me and briefs me on what kind of painting he wants, I fetch an artist who I know is good at it and ask him to create a painting accordingly,” she says.

‘Art per wall’ also offers house-decorating services such as painting of walls, ceilings, etc, to suit client requirements.

Apart from the artists signed up with her, she runs the business almost single-handedly — she only has a person for telemarketing.

She’s been getting repeat business, in Pune and Mumbai, and she expects to soon be catering to clients in Delhi as well. To further promote her concept and the art, she organised an exhibition around Diwali.

The paintings can also be bought outright. When renting, the client pays the deposit and rents the painting for a minimum of six months.

The watchword to this whole business — affordability — means different things to different people. Therefore, the works of art range in price from Rs200 to Rs3,000, depending on the size of the painting and the medium used (canvas, paper, etc).

However, in addition to the unique, authentic artistic touch it gives to clients’ decoration schemes, the concept gives the option of variety — clients can exchange their paintings for different ones every six months without giving in to the twinges of buyers’ remorse.

Mrs Bharadwaj says that she has faced some problems getting people to agree to the rental deposit, but it’s something she must insist upon, given that the art is original. Therefore, she’s come up with a deposit plan she’s promoting as “Rent more, deposit less.”

“Good for me, good for them,” she says.

Good for the artists, too.

'Art per wall' has applied an old concept in an interesting new way and thereby altered the perception that original art is only for the wealthy.

While it provides an opportunity for art lovers to display authentic creations without fretting about price, it also facilitates a genuine source of income for the artists and a wider recognition of their talent.

Mrs Bharadwaj’s idea certainly does seem to be proving good for everyone involved.

You can contact her at rasana_aashish@rediffmail.com.