Google looking at local artists for Doodle projects

Google is looking at involving local artists in its Doodle projects, said Kristopher Hom, part of Google's Doodle Team in the US, on the sidelines of the sixth Doodle4Google event in India. Army Public School (Pune)'s Vaidehi Reddy's Doodle on Assam for this year's theme of "a place in India I wish to visit" was chosen the national winner. The doodle will be on the Google India homepage on November 14.

After winning the prize, which includes Google footing the bill for a trip to the biggest Northeastern state for Reddy's family, from Ajit Ninan, the veteran political cartoonist, and Savio Mascarenhas, art director at Tinkle, a children's magazine, an elated Reddy said, "It's my birthday on that day." Ninan and Mascarenhas were part of the jury that decided winners in three groups of students from classes 1-3, 4-6 and 7-10, and a national winner from 12 finalists among these groups.

Hom said Google recently sent a team of US artists to Brazil to involve artists from the South American country in its Doodle projects. Google has also started inviting local artists as guests to help the US team make the doodle for their countries but the process is still largely controlled and driven by the company's home team of engineers. They might look at projects driven by local artists in their own countries in the future, Hom said.