Pencil lead artwork steals the show at Chitra Santhe

The model of Dasara procession and face of prominent personalities carved on pencil lead stole the show at Chitra Santhe and Hasiru Santhe, organised as part of Dasara, on Krishnaraja (KR) Boulevard in the city on Saturday.

“Krishna Kale” - micro artwork on pencil lead, by S Nanjundaswamy received an overwhelming response during the day-long event.

A model of Dasara procession, comprising 10 elephants, golden howdah, Ane gaadi (cart drawn by elephant), carved on a single pencil lead, the face of members of the erstwhile royal family of Mysuru Chamaraja Wadiyar, Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar and Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, were on display at the event.

Unity in diversity

To spread the message of Unity in diversity Nanjundaswamy had carved, star, moon, Jesus and idol of Ganesha, on a single lead. The models on Indian independence movement including those of Mahatma Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, Indian National Flag, Amar Jawan Jyoti, also drew crowds.

The face of former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Gandhian Anna Hazare, on opposite sides of a single pencil lead, faces of all eight Jnanpith awardees from Karnataka was another attraction.

The faces of all personalities — Kuvempu, Da Ra Bendre, Shivarama Karanth, Masti Venkatesh Iyengar, V K Gokak, Girish Karnad, U R Ananthamurthy and Chandrashekar Kambar — are being carved on a single pencil lead.

Mysuru Dasara-2019

In addition, the face of writer S L Bhyrappa, who inaugurated Mysuru Dasara-2019, was on display.

The visitors to the stall were excited to see the artworks and appreciated Nanjundaswamy.

Supriya, a visitor to the stall expressed, “The artworks are amazing. Such artworks and talents must be encouraged and promoted. It is not an easy task to carve models on a small piece like pencil lead. The work and patience of the artist need to be appreciated for his unique talent.”

Nanjundaswamy is practising the micro artwork since 1999 and has nearly 1,000 micro artworks to his credit.

However, nearly 200 artworks were on display during the event.

Good response

Chitra Santhe and Hasiru Santhe which replaced open street festival received a good response with unique artworks and naturally grown vegetables. \

Cultural performance by artistes and children added more colour and glamour to the event.

Besides pencil carving, face painting, anamorphic art of Shivarathri Rajendra Swami of Suttur Mutt were other attractions in the event. In addition, eco-friendly products such as specially designed re-usable cloth bags, bagasse containers, spider photography exhibition, paper cutting artwork attracted visitors.

District in-charge Minister V Somanna inaugurated the event, earlier during the day. MLA L Nagendra was present on the occasion.