Art Cafe – Mistletoe

Art Gallery at Mistleteo Homestay

The Art Gallery at Mistletoe is perhaps the first and only dedicated art gallery in Munnar, celebrating original contemporary art from Kerala in the midst of nature. Every artwork here was created in situ during a specially curated art camp at Mistletoe, allowing artists to respond organically to the landscape, climate, and quiet rhythms of the hills.
The collection features original works by prominent contemporary artists including Aji VN, M. Somanathan, Raghunandan, Manoi Brahmamangalam, Shibi Balakrishnan, Sanam Narayan, K. Leon, Santhan Velayudhan, and an emerging young mural artist Manikandan Punnakkal as well as few clay murals works by Sherif - Nilambur aTerracotta artist. Together, the gallery stands as a living archive—where art is not merely displayed, but born, shaped, and preserved within the spirit of Munnar. Below are short, work-referenced lines for each artist in the collection:

Featured artists

Aji V.N

Renowned for otherworldly, atmospheric landscapes in charcoal and oil that fold Kerala’s tropical memory into precise, cinematic vistas; his recent oil series and large charcoal drawings show this trademark tension between hush and drama.

M. Somanathan

A practitioner whose textured, intimate compositions draw on memory and local life, often realised in layered watercolour / drawing studies made on-site.

Raghunandan N

Works across drawing and painting with energetic line and figurative fragments; his drawings and small-format works emphasize direct mark- making and personal mythologies.

Manoj (Manoi) Brahmamangalam

A sculptor-painter whose installations and narrative canvases reference cultural histories and constructed environments; his practice often blends sculpture, mural-like surfaces and public-installation sensibilities.

Shibi Balakrishnan

Produces abstract, movement-driven bodies of work where geometric forms and emerging sculptural language explore relational and human themes; recent solo shows and Akademi listings document this direction.

Sanam C. Narayanan

Makes textured, large-scale landscapes and mixed-media surfaces that translate sculptural instincts into contemplative two-dimensional works.

K. L. Leon

A painter who mines personal and collective memory; his canvases, often layered and quietly narrative, have featured in residencies and solo shows in Kerala.

Santhan Velayudhan

Rooted in Kerala’s visual culture, his work often draws on rural life and everyday textures, showing a strong connection to place and tradition in contemporary form.

Manikandan Punnakkal

A mural specialist trained in Guruvayur traditions, known for translating Kerala mural technique to contemporary supports and for restoration work (notably at Vaikom Mahadeva temple).