Art for Artists146; Sake

8220;At the 18 studios where these artists worked, we have accumulated 50-odd paintings, more than 15 sculptures and some 100 graphic printings. Now, to display these art works, we are thinking of constructing an art gallery in the premises,8221; says Puja Shah, centre co-ordinator.

8220;The centre is a good incentive for those who are keen on a career in art. Budding artists get good exposure as the centre is a melting pot of art and culture,8221; says Vadodara-based Dhruv Mistry who is a regular visitor.

Painters Rajesh Bhowmik, Binod Sharma, Bibhu Patnaik, Abhimanyu, Sudhakar and Nilesh Suthar have left their work behind while graphic prints and sculptures by Ravindra Reddy, Manisha Parekh, Sudarshan Shetty, Jaishree Chakrabarty, Walter D8217;souza and Anandjit Ray dot the landscape of the campus.

The centre also provides short-term scholarship to artists. Every scholar who avails of the studio facility has to donate at least two of his/her art works to the centre.

Agartala-based painter Bhowmik, who is known for having developed a style of his own 8220;with a shade of German expressionism8221;, has left quite a few of his works at the centre. There are also works by Binod Sharma, an award-winning painter who studied in Santiniketan and then at Vadodara8217;s MSU. Sculptures by Sudarshan Reddy, who has been associated with experimental and postmodern sculptures and has frequently exhibited his works in Delhi and Mumbai, can also be spotted as can sculptures by MSU product Ravindra Reddy.

8220;A number of his art works are suggestive of a tribal association. One of his works, a head with an unpolished side, reflects the split nature of a human being,8221; explains Ashish Sarkar, an artist and faculty member.

Sushen Ghosh, who was associated with the sculpture department of Santiniketan, once attended a workshop here and left a prominent sculpture depicting musical rhythm.

There are also a number of anonymous and incomplete sculptures that contribute significantly to the campus. Sculptures in wood, fibreglass, terracotta and iron can be seen every where. Then there are prints 8212; some 100 in number and including lithographs, etching, screen printing, woodcut and linoleum printing.

An American, who was also a scholar at the Centre in the year 1998, left a sculpture inspired by a rickshaw. Tucked away in a corner is a torso of a pregnant woman done in terracotta. 8220;The palm spread across the womb signifies some unknown presence,8221; explains Sarkar.

A sculpture done by Jayanti Naik, associated with the National Institute of Design, captures atrocity done on female by showing a body severed by a marble sword.

8220;These are just a few examples of art works that still exist with us to which the number will add as scholars keep adding to the repository. By selling them we generate funds, which is then spent on scholars who come here to practise their art,8221; Shah says.

Urmila Kanoria, chairperson of the centre, says the location with 8220;easy accessibility to major art centres like Delhi and Mumbai8221; comes in handy. 8220;Even if we sell art work it is not meant for the profit of the organisation, but for the benefit of the new artists,8221; she says. 8220;A number of works have already been sold and the process continues.8221;