Without any plan, Academy busy in collecting, dumping statues since 70s
Sanjeev K Sharma
JAMMU, July 19: While a number of sculptures placed here and there in the grassy and bushy lawn of J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL) and at many other places inside the premises of the Academy tell the tale of skilful hands which carved them from the ordinary stones, they also expose the negligence of those who were duty bound to properly maintain and preserve these unique art works.
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Anyone on entering the main gate of the Academy can easily witness a spacious lawn, now bushy and grassy, where many statues are placed in a haphazard manner on pedestals.
As one moves further, one may easily find such precious art works even at many other places like the one near the water-point etc, some with damaged pedestals and others with damaged name plates.
On talking to some experts, it came to fore that these sculptures were collected and dumped by the Academy since 70s and the reputed cultural institution has so far failed to come up with some proper plan or policy for these art works due to which common visitors just look these statues and leave knowing nothing about these precious art works.
Claiming that he was not sure about the exact number of such sculptures with the JKAACL, an official of the Academy informed that these statues might be somewhere between 30-35 in number and a few of these were also shifted to Kala Kendra some time back.
“The Kala Kendra also has some more such sculptures which were made by different artists during the workshops conducted there,” he further said.
On the condition of not being named, an insider in the Academy claimed that these statues are well preserved by the JKAACL.
“Chemicals are not used for cleaning these statues as it may affect the colour of the stone of which these art works are made of,” he maintained adding, “Names of the sculptors who have carved these statues are mentioned on the name plates fixed on the pedestals on which these art works have been placed.”
He also claimed that they have maintained records of all these art works in their stock registers.
Sources informed that no technical preservation and maintenance of these statues has been done by the Academy and so far none has paid any attention in this direction.
“However, at the time of Darbar Move funds somewhere between Rs. 5000-7000 were released to paint the pedestal over which these sculptures are placed,” they claimed.
A veteran and internationally acclaimed sculptor from Jammu, Ganesh Sharma informed that in the year 1987 he crafted a sculpture during a camp organized by the Academy and it has been placed there since then.
“Initially, there was a plan for coming up with a Sculptors Garden within the premises of the Academy in 1980 which might be the first in northern India at that time and the renowned sculptor who started this art in J&K, Vidya Rattan Khajuria was the brain behind it,” Sharma informed adding that in those times the Academy used to conduct camps with sculptors and the art works which remained output of such camps were placed in the garden.
He also said that the last such camp was conducted a year back after 10 years and the statues made during that camp are kept at Kala Kendra.
Sharma also claimed that the cream coloured white stone used for making the sculptures is brought from Thathri (Doda) and the rest from Srinagar.
“Initially, many statues were not displayed in the garden but it happened only after the sculptors raised a voice for that and some of these art works were also taken to Kala Kendra as there was no sufficient space left for these in the Academy,” he informed adding that at Kala Kendra these statues remained neglected and when the artists who carved them raised a voice, these art works were installed but still name plates were not fixed with many of them.
The veteran sculptor asserted that the artists who made such statues expect that the bushes and the grass surrounding the precious art works should be cleared in routine and the name plates having the name of the artists who carved these statues should be taken care of and the pedestal carrying these art works should also be maintained properly and painted in routine.
An expert said, as a statue is made of stone, it remains very strong and has a long life.
“Worst to happen to it is that it might be buried under the earth during some earthquake but still it could be dug out again as many idols of stone have been excavated while digging and such things become historically important,” he stated.
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