The year was 1980. Sculptor K.S. Radhakrishnan had completed his studies at Santiniketan and was looking for a job when sculptor Kanayi Kunhiraman, then principal of Fine Arts College, Thiruvananthapuram, offered him a position in the faculty.
“I was tired of starving in Calcutta [now Kolkata] and was thinking of returning to my home State. The concept of freelancing had not arrived yet,” recalled Mr. Radhakrishnan.
But when he arrived in Thiruvananthapuram, a strike by students was under way, and “some teachers had been locked up”. This got him in a quandary, and he sought more time from Kanayi to think through the situation.
“Whenever you were in such situations, you would immediately consult your teacher K.G. Subramanyan, Manida to us. A man of a few words, but profound in his expressions, he just said: ‘It would be a suicidal attempt to join.” Probably, he thought place at that time did not have a congenial environment for an artist to grow and take the institution along. Further, my joining would have beset an existing faculty, who would have been removed to accommodate me. In short, I returned to Calcutta,” Mr. Radhakrishnan said.
Special presentation
He recalled the incident at a remembrance meet on his guru, noted artist, muralist, and writer KGS, organised by Orthic Creative Centre here on Friday where a journey through the life of KGS was brought out through images of the artist through his lifetime.
KGS was a teacher with an insight and a deep interest in the works of the younger generation. But since he would ask probing questions into their work, people initially hesitated to approach him. “But he was always accessible, genial and witty. There was not a single moment when he lost his temper,” Mr. Radhakrishnan said. The painting department of Santiniketan was in a crisis caused by shortage of top-notch teachers when KGS arrived from Baroda to be a permanent faculty member.
Projecting images of the card board replica of KGS’s reconstruction of the studio of Nandalal Bose at Kalabhavan in Santiniketan, Mr. Radhakrishnan also offered glimpses into the master artist’s meticulous practice.
The process of transferring the elaborate mural sketches on to the studio in ruins, which was given a facelift, brought about the artist’s attention to detail.
Later, in a freewheeling chat, Mr. Radhakrishnan said artists in Kerala should join hands to set up a national museum or gallery for permanent display of art work.
