LAHORE: Visual art has its great significance in every sphere of life and in certain cases even wildlife benefits from paints and brushes.

The Lahore Zoo has recently initiated a programme called ‘The Colours of Jungle’ under which murals are being painted on the outer walls of the cages of different animals. Artist Muhammad Azam Pasha, who works with the Zoo as a painter, told Dawn he had been painting murals on the directions of the director to add beauty to barren cemented walls of the zoo, in an effort to give it a fresh look.

The paint being used on these longer walls is kind of an all weather paint because it is also given an emulsion coat.

Mr Pasha has painted five murals in the zoo and is preparing for more. Many outer walls of different zoo enclosures have been marked for large scaled paintings. By now the artist has painted an outer wall of the bear’s cage and that of a few other animals.

Mr Pasha who learned painting from Alhamra Art Gallery told Dawn the Zoo keeping in view the appreciation from visitors for these murals would soon hold a wildlife painting competition among students of colleges and universities. Cash prizes, certificates and shields will be given to the three best position holders. The competition will either be held by the end of this month or the first week of March, said Lahore Zoo Director Hassan Ali Sukhera.

Mr Sukhera said wildlife was the beauty of Nature and the zoo was providing recreational and educational services to a large number of visitors.

The annual visitor turnover is approximately four million. He said the zoo would organise the painting competition to portray the wildlife as beauty of nature and the need of conservation of biodiversity.

The programme will enhance attraction for the visitors and the media to spread awareness about wildlife. Also, the competition will be a great opportunity for the artists to show their concepts and ideas through colours. Winner painters would also paint live at the spot, he added.

“We will advertise the competition, select some 100 submissions which would be judged by a jury and the jury would later narrow down the count of submissions after judging the works,” said the director. The painting material for live paintings would be provided by the zoo, added he.

Published in Dawn, April 14th, 2018