The skillful hands of some of the state’s finest sculptors have given a whole new ambience to the pristine beauty of the Adventure Park on the banks of the Ashtamudi Lake here. When ‘Monsoon Sculptures’, a 10-day camp organised by the District Tourism Promotion Council with the aim of attracting more tourists to this nerve centre of tourism in the district, concludes here on Tuesday, it will be leaving behind 10 fascinating sculptures with distinctive themes.
The concrete marvels, with a maximum height of 8 feet, have come up amidst intermittent downpour and cool breeze that helped the artists draw inspiration from the nature.
The artists said that their premeditated ideas took a new shape drawing energy from the charm of the weather and the lush green locale.
‘’I had planned to work on something else, but after spending sometime in the park where you can spot a good number of lovers, I came up with something fresh,’’ says Shenay S S of Neendakara. The Aranmula Vasthuvidya Gurukulam alumnus portrays a couple in the park in his work ‘Don’t Disturb’. Shenlay believes every sculpture should draw energy from its surroundings. The best example for this is perhaps the work of Aryanad Rajendran’s ‘Meditation’. The fine intricate details of the sculpture are embellished by the light rays falling through the trees. Rajendran’s work is expected to attract visitors, just as his famed ‘mother and child’ statue on the Medical College Hospital campus in Thiruvananthapuram attracts the curious eyes of the people.
Pitched against these works is ‘The Love without Heart and Brain’ by A Guruprasad. A policeman by profession, this Lalithakala Akademi award winner took leave from his official duty to complete this abstract work. Perhaps the one which has already become popular among the lot is V Satheesan’s ‘Story Teller’. Satheesan portrays a human figure in a relaxed posture telling story to a bird seated on his leg. Satheesan, who won the year’s Lalithakala Akademi award for sculptor, is an alumnus of the Delhi University. ‘Buddha 99’ by Chavara Vijayan is an interesting reflection of the decline of Buddhism in India. ‘’Buddhist ideals are ageing in the country and the followers of Buddhism left in the country are also not doing anything about it. It explains to some extent the deterioration in our value system,’’ says Viajayan about his work. Kottayam-based artist Ambish’s ‘tree’ is a contemplation on the seamless bond between the nature and man. The hapless life of prey is depicted through ‘Victim’ by another Kottayam-based artist Biju C Bharath.
The Kerala Lalithakala Akademi award winner artist Saju Mannathur from Ernakulam presents the impoverished life of a fisherwoman, with work ‘Aval’ which depicts a woman carrying the skeleton of a fish.
Another unique structure on display is the ‘Bundle of Slogans’ by Thiruvananthapuram-based artist Shivan. Embodying a range of connotations the huge bundle brings together the collective wisdom of the civilisation. Thripunithura RLV College alumnus Vineesh Kumar V presents the futility of snobbish life style through his work ‘Decent’.
Tourism Minister A P Anilkumar will dedicate sculptures at a function to be held at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.