INDOMITABLE SPIRIT: C. S. N. Patnaik in his `Patnaik gallery' in Guntur.

GUNTUR: At a time when abstract art form with a mixture of medium is the order of the day, Guntur-based octogenarian sculptor C.S.N. Patnaik displays his class working with the traditional medium like bronze, terracotta and wood. No wonder State Government chose Patnaik for the highest award `Kala Ratna-2006' awarded on Independence Day at Hyderabad.

Monumental work

Sticking to his liking for the rural folk and detailing ethnic expressions of women by way of their facial make-up, display of ornaments, Patnaik is active in the Indian art gallery circuit and is still a sought-after artiste.

Taking round his `Patnaik Gallery' painfully built up over four decades in Vidya Nagar in Guntur, he derives satisfaction from the pieces he created last month at the Jaipur sculptors' camp.

Humble beginnings

Retired lecturer of fine arts from Government Women's College in Guntur, Patnaik's signature pieces include bold and big faces titled Appi and Lachee, some of which have been purchased by the National Gallery of Modern Art also.

Frail, but brimming with enthusiasm, the sculptor is now preparing for a show in New Delhi in October on an invitation from a gallery.

Beginning his career as a painter and completing his diploma in fine arts from Chennai, he migrated to sculpting in 1974 to more effectively display feelings and provide a three-dimensional touch to his works. Learning on the art forms of 17th century European style, he made his mark by adopting the rural lifestyle into his works both in paintings and sculptures.

Working even today in the lost-wax method to create his masterpieces in Bronze at own foundry adjoining his studio, he prepares basic models with clay and outer shell with plaster of Paris.

Treating the completed pieces with copper nitrate and nitric acid, he provides a rustic look to take them closer reality and increase the life.

His aspiration is to get a retrospective exhibition of entire gamut of his works organized by the State Government. "I have received an assurance from Andhra Pradesh Cultural Academy Chairman Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam and hope to see it materialise," he told The Hindu .

"I do not believe in doing commissioned works as that does carry my brand of art," observes Patnaik.

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