The paintings that gave life to ‘Aano’

Experience the journey of Aano, the albino elephant, through watercolor paintings capturing the essence of Rome's culture 500 years ago.

Aano, an elephant of the colour of ginger, was the pet of Pope Leo the 10th. This albino elephant from Nilambur in Kerala travelled to Rome 500 years ago. This forms the premise of Aano a novel by G.R. Indugopan, while ‘Aano’, the exhibition of water colour paintings by noted artist Prashanth Olavilam that began at the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Art Gallery in Kozhikode on Monday, features illustrations for the work.

For Mr. Olavilam, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and the most challenging work he had ever undertaken. “I had to capture the culture of Rome at the time, the fashion, artefacts, and so on. My best resources were the works of renaissance artists such as Leonardo DaVinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, who were employed by the Pope at the time,” he said, adding that Raphael had, in fact, sketched Aano.

The 120-odd paintings in various shades of yellow ochre bring in the feeling of antiquity, while reminding one of the peculiar colour of Aano, the elephant. The paintings were printed for the novel that was serialised in the Mathrubhumi weekly, though they were omitted when published as a book. However, they are being revived in a travelogue by Mr. Indugopan in which he traces the steps of Aano along with his fellow traveller, writer Benyamin.

Mr. Olavilam, an art teacher by profession, works at the Malayala Kala Gramam, Mahe. The exhibition was inaugurated by writer Subhash Chandran on May 27 (Monday) and will conclude on May 31 (Friday).