Led by the lead

This veterinary student crafts magic on pencil leads using a surgical blade. And thus you have tiny sculptures crafted on all kinds of pencils. 
Led by the lead

KOCHI: Ever wondered about the charm of the Taj Mahal when it is scaled down to minuscule size? It is this longing to witness the magnificence of the towering structures in its minute form that drives Manoj M to craft sculptures in pencil leads. 

This veterinary student crafts magic on pencil leads using a surgical blade. And thus you have tiny sculptures crafted on all kinds of pencils. 

Be it your ubiquitous writing pencil, the drawing pencil or the less familiar carpenter pencil, sculptures are crafted with abandon by this 24-year-old student.

The core of the pencil gets carved into myriad sculptures as the graphite turns into his canvas. His smallest sculpture stands at 3 mm height. It was by accident that Manoj took to this miniature art form. 
It was two years back while watching a movie that he chanced upon a pencil lead structure. “My friends and I decided to try making one. And ultimately I did, after many trials. But then by evening, a friend had accidentally dropped it and it broke,” Manoj recalls. And that was how his tryst with pencil lead carving began.

For someone who had no background in art, it was his sheer passion that made him experiment with this micro art. 

“I use only surgical blades that are past their expiry date. I mastered the sculpting technique by trial and error. The lead is very brittle and you have to be very careful when sculpting it. And the pencil used varies with respect to the sculpture,” says the self-taught artist. 

Manoj adds that he never uses a magnifying glass for sculpting. “It was a bit difficult at first as I was didn’t know the ABCs of drawing. You have to give an outline and getting the right dimensions was difficult at first,” he adds.

But over time he has emerged into a master sculptor. His art is not just about passion but compassion as well. His exhibitions are organised along with charities and the proceeds are being given for their welfare. 
Through his social media page, Manoj is also getting orders for his art. Sixty percent of the proceeds from the sales go for charitable works.

“I do not intend to make a living out of this art. The idea is to help people with art,” says the final year student of Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University at Pookode, Wayanad.

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