Antonio Puri

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Artist wants to get people talking, thinking

By LAVINIA DeCASTRO
Courier-Post Staff

Sunday, November 14, 2004

South Jersey has a new abstract mural, and it's not in artsy Collingswood, affluent Haddonfield or one of the colleges.

It's in Haddon Township.

The mural, titled Cascade because of the colorful paint that drips over red, white and yellow circles, sits at 1001 White Horse Pike, one block from Cuthbert Boulevard.

It's not as out of place among the pike's real-estate offices, auto-body shops, gas stations and convenience stores as one might think.

"It's kind of an artsy building," said Antonio Puri, the artist who created the mural.

The building is home to a dance studio, a pottery cooperative, an art studio and a consignment store. Puri wanted the building's exterior to match the artistic spirit within.

"There was that back wall that was just chipping away," Puri said. "It looked nasty, so I asked the owner, `What are you doing with that?' and he said, `Nothing, really.' "

The building's owner, Dominic Flamini, liked the idea so much that he donated the materials.

"The town is trying to identify that area as an artist area. There's the Ritz (Theatre in Oaklyn) nearby," Flamini said. "We're trying to help them out."

Puri donated his time and talent.

"This is accessible art. It's right there on the pike. People don't have to go to a gallery or museum to see it," Puri said. "It'll be interesting to see what kind of feedback I get."

So far, most has been positive.

Some, though, have asked him why he chose to paint an abstract mural instead of illustrating some sort of community feature, like murals in Philadelphia do.

"As much as I love the mural program in Philly, it's more like a community project. It has nothing to do with art," Puri said. "The murals in Philly, they're really photo albums up there on the wall."

Puri wanted to bridge the gap between North Jersey and New York City, which have an abundance of abstract murals, and South Jersey and Philadelphia.

"It creates conversations, maybe gets people to think," Puri said. "That's pretty much what art is about, bridging the gap and bringing people together."

He should know.

"My body is Indian, my soul is Spanish and my mind is American," he said.

A native of India, Puri attended an international boarding school in the foothills of the Himalayas before going to the University of Iowa to study art.

He later spent some time in San Francisco, Madrid and Chicago, where he was an attorney.

"Law was the opposite of art," Puri said. "It was killing my soul."

So he gave it up and came to South Jersey five years ago to be closer to his 6-year-old son, who lives in Mantua. Puri has a studio in Haddon Township and one in New York.

"I respect that," Flamini said. "I think that people who have the courage to be true to their dreams should be supported."

Puri wanted his mural to reflect the area's diversity as well as the diversity he encountered in his travels.

"Some people are like, `What's that?' " Puri said. "It's the whole idea of movement into this area, a celebration of everything new coming in."