Kanaka Murthy's works are all over: in temples, ashrams and institutions. I once asked her why she never put signature on her works; her sculptures would stand for centuries and people would wonder who made them. But she said this was God’s work. Her Guru also did not sign his works; she did not either. For her, this was a part of her spirituality; and she transcended ego through her works.
She was born on December 2, 1942 in T Narasipura (Mysuru district). She came to Bengaluru for higher studies and did B.Sc. Here, she joined Kalamandira, the first arts school in Bangalore, where she learned painting and drawing. But she was fascinated by sculpture.
People dissuaded her from taking it up saying the field was not fit for a woman, but Kanaka Murthy broke the tradition and became a sculptor. She was a pioneer. Traditional Shilpis are a tightly knit community and for a Brahmin women to break into it was audacious.
Her Guru, D Vadiraja, himself was not from the community of Shilpis either. Her training and apprenticeship under him gave strength to her art and craft. Traditional Shilpis follow canons laid down in Shilpa Shastras because idols are worshipped in temples.
But her Guru was a free thinker and so was she. She made sculpturs for temples, but did not follow rigid guidelines. Her work was traditional yet modern, a balance that is hard to achieve. She was free of constraints, creative, yet worked within the broad tradition. In this her model was the Chalukyan Shilpa which also did not follow rigid canons.
Kanaka Murthy grew up with music at home. Her parents were well-to-do land owners and they had musical soirees at home. She was deeply interested in Kannada literature and was very fond of Kuvempu. She had composed some of his verses in Carnatic classical music.
It was her interest in music that led to her doing portraits of Gungubai Hangal, Doraiswamy Iyengar, T Chowdiah, Mallikarjuna Mansur and Bhimsen Joshi, besides those of eminent Kannada writers like Kuvempu, Shivarama Karanth, UR Anantha Murthy and GV. She was not only a traditional shilpi, but also a modern sculptor.
Her interest in literature led her to write four books, including her autobiography. Another book is ready for publication and will be brought out soon. Our conversations often revolved around music and literature. She treated me like her younger brother.
On Naga Panchami, she would come home with a gift. She broke with tradition in many ways, but in this she followed the tradition. Whenever she went to Gandhi Bazaar she would also being something for us from Subbamma stores.
She was an expert cook and took pride in her Mulkanadu cuisine. She was a very warm and affectionate person and treated us like family. Her devotion to her Guru was exemplary. Her books are about her Guru. She was a model of Guru Shishya Parampara, but she was very modern in her thinking.
She was deeply spiritual but did not believe in ritualistic religion. She had desired that her body be donated to a medical college rather than be cremated. Sadly this was not to be because of her death from COVID-19.
She was an inspiration to many people. Her life is a lesson in how to be modern in thinking yet remain rooted in native culture. She was truly an unusual person. We will not see the like of her again. She broke taboos and didn’t just become a pioneer but also an inspiration for many others. Karnataka has lost a great artiste.