Artist Sukanta Chowdhury’s sculptures go beyond just aesthetic appeal. They delve into the deeper meaning of life, and in the process, reflect man’s relationship with nature. “An artist is first a thinker, and then a creator. I think nature is the ultimate healer, the only driving force of life and hence it is my primary inspiration. To me, sculptures are a glow in this pessimistic world, where simplicity is often obstructed by materialism. They force our minds to look beyond the obvious. And they also epitomise grandeur, space, oblivion and age within a boundary,” says the Kolkata-based artist.
Sukanta feels that he discovered his penchant for sculpting during infancy. “I first scribbled with colour at the age of one. If I look back on my childhood, I don’t remember playing with any kind of mechanical toys but with clay, pebbles, stones, nails and wasted, distorted things. That’s how my journey in creation began and it still continues to be the same. Sculpture has become my passion, my food for life,” he says.
About his latest work The Eternal Journey, the artist says, “Created with wood and bronze, it signifies a journey that’s beyond the grip of space and time. The rouge boy handling the metallic chord is pulling the rath (chariot) with much enthusiasm. The rath stands for the rich Indian tradition and colours, while the festive fervour is shown in the boy’s graceful movements. And the trio of goddesses has been the sacred pageant of peace and unity throughout the ages.”
“My sculpture overcomes the three facets — time, death and mutability. It propounds the message of happiness and immortality beyond time,” reveals the man who finds motivation in the works of William Wordsworth and Joseph Turner. Already an emerging name in the Kolkata art circle, the young sculptor graduated from the Government College of Art and Craft, Kolkata in 2007. “I remember those days as a time of immense struggle and artistic fervour, when I used to create a sculpture in 48 hours, working non-stop,” he recalls.
However, the 29-year-old doesn’t have the highest regard for degrees. “My vision has developed not from intellectually laden texts but from nature. For instance, even a man flying a kite can leave a strong impression,” explains the artist, adding, “To me, the world is a luminous art form with infinite structures and motifs. And through my work, I intend to break down the chauvinism behind the connoted term ‘classical’ and look for a romanticised fantasy.”
His keen observation of the nuances of life is hard to miss. “I was intrigued about how a fruitseller tries to attract people. His sharp eyes that never fail to spot a prospective buyer and the way he shouts and calls out to people inspired me to make a sculpture of his eyes and lips,” he says. Incidentally, this innovative creation has won him an award from the governor of West Bengal.
While rooting himself within the parameters of man and nature, he continues to experiment with varied mediums. “I have worked with wood, bronze, glass, metal and stone. I think mediums are identical but forms have a novelty about them. I have created the figures of goddess Durga and her opponent Asura in the form of a safety pin. It’s an example of great power being depicted within a tiny space,” he says.
His other sculptures which are characterised by the show of legs “denotes how balance is maintained in nature. The musician and the thinker are created with elongated, slender legs to mark their parched yet dominating existence,” he adds.