MYSURU: You probably made sand castles as a child and enjoyed. And also watched in dismay as your proud work disappeared in a flash. But for 30-year-old MN Gowri, making sand sculptures is beyond building castles and ensuring that they don’t crumble.
She knows her sand. Knows that it requires patience, delicate handling and fierce concentration to create sand wonders. She has created the sand sculptures, mostly on the beaches, in more than 50 places across India on various occasions. Some of the major attractions are the first five ancient civilisations of the world along with the tribes of the world, ‘Save Wildlife’ theme having all endangered wild animals, marine life representing the ocean creatures found under the sea, vintage car, zodiac wheel and much more.
“Creating sand sculptures on the beach side is very challenging as they may be blown away by wind or washed away by the tide. When it is too windy, we have to cover the sculptures with screens and keep recreating whenever the sculptures get damaged,” says Gowri.
Explaining what drew her to the art she says while surfing the internet, she found sand sculptures created by artists in foreign countries. “I was amazed watching those videos and decided to create sand art works.” Her efforts have yielded fruit and today she is recognised as the only female sand artist from the state. She even started a sand museum on Chamundi Hill Road, spread over 13,000 sqft in 2014. It is one of the must-see places for tourists.
She has displayed 150 sculptures under 16 different themes. She has used 115 truckloads of sand to create the works and took eight months to complete the sculptures. She changes the themes periodically to attract tourists. Another major attraction in the museum is the 3D selfie gallery.
Cricketer Irfan Pathan, actor Bharathi, late actor-turned politician Ambareesh, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav among others have visited the museum and appreciated her works.
Gowri, who was interested in drawing from childhood, has done Masters in fine arts at KSOU, Mysuru. Since 2011, she has been making sand sculptures and has created a niche for herself in this intricate art form.
Explaining how a sand sculpture is created, Gowri says, “Loads of sand have to be piled up to a certain height to create a sculpture. Later, it should be thoroughly mixed with water, compressed and rammed before starting the work. We must start working on the sand from top to bottom as we cannot climb back for any corrections. We use simple hand tools like a shovel.”
The sculptures are protected under metal structures with sun-ray passing through sheets, which are waterproof. To drain the rainwater away from entering the sculpture area, she has adopted a water drainage system.
Gowri says the biggest challenge is to protect the sculptures from insects and rodents. “We maintain the sculptures by redoing the damaged sculptures every week. We also spray insecticides/pesticides and do brushing. Also, outdoor activity needs constant maintenance. To provide a seating facility for the tourist, discarded coconut tree barks have been used as benches.”
Going down memory lane, she says, “My father B M Nanjundaswamy, who owns a sheet metal fabrication factory, wanted me to do mechanical engineering. Whereas I discontinued studies while pursuing second year in BE Mechanical. Later, I did an animation course such as 3Ds max Photoshop. I realised these 3D sculptures made on computers did not have any feeling of life as much as made by hands. It was when I tried my sand sculpture and created Lord Shiva at Suttur in 2011 that I received a lot of appreciation, and it boosted my confidence. It was then I decided to continue in the sand sculpting field.”
“Surprisingly, my father who was against my wish, after seeing the sculpture of Lord Shiva, was astonished and extended his support to me. When I wanted to set up a sand museum, my mother Nagalambika and elder sister Neelambika supported me. I started the works by taking a bank loan of Rs 20 lakh, and I have taken the land on lease,” adds Gowri.
Gowri’s father Nanjundaswamy says,”It is true that I had never encouraged my daughter in the art field. Today, I feel happy with her achievements and recognition she is receiving.”
Gowri has been conferred with the District Kannada Rajyotsava award in Mysuru and several other awards from local organisations. She says, “I feel proud and happy when people appreciate my art works. My wish is to establish more sand museums in the country and abroad as well. We receive a footfall of 200 to 1,500 per day, depending on the season.” The entry fee for adults is Rs 40, while Rs 20 for children. The museum is open from 8 am to 6.30 pm.
Displays in the museum
Some of the displays include Disneyland for kids, scenes from the Mahabharatha, Lord Ganesha, a mosque, Santa Claus, tribes and ancient history, marine life, horror world, laughing Buddha; traditional Mysuru Dasara procession, the last royal heir of Mysuru Sirkantadatta Narashimaraja Wadiyar seated on the royal throne during Navarathri, Goddess Chamundeshwari atop Chamundi hills
and so on.
A new venture
‘Jalbagh’, a first reflection Art Garden on KRS Main Road at Belagola, is Gowri’s venture. The garden displays miniature replicas of Mysuru’s major heritage monuments such as Mysuru Palace and Krishnarajasagar Dam crafted using different art forms such as mesh art, plastic paper art, rope art, net art, metal art, mashrabiya art, lighting art, glow art, etc. Using fibre, cement, stone, and other materials they have created the artworks. The uniqueness of the artworks is the sculpture’s reflection can be seen in the water, and have special lighting arrangement. Gowri claims this is first of its kind in the world.The garden is being developed at a cost
of Rs 1.5 crore.