Naveen launches sand art coffee-table book

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday released a coffee table book on Sand Art and Sand Sculpture titled 'Imaginations in Sand'.

The book, a first of its kind the country, has been published by Sudarsan Pattnaik, who was conferred with Padma Sri this year for popularising sand art, and is a rare composition of photographs and scribbles showcasing various expressions and experiments in the ancient form of sand art.

Minister for Tourism and Culture Ashok Chandra Panda, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Tourism and Culture Arabinda Kumar Padhee and several eminent personalities were present on the occasion.

"With the increasing popularity of sand art and sculptures across the world, I decided to make the book to enable sand art lovers as well as all people to readily have the delight of glancing through popular sand sculptures that were made by me in several countries across the world," Sudarshan said.

"Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who is an author and a keen art lover, guided me on how to go about on the book and supported me in making this book happen," he said.

Sudarshan said he would donate 50 per cent of the entire sales proceeding of the book on the inaugural day to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund for the people affected in the recent floods.

'Imaginations in sand' has 11 broad categories comprising photographs and scribbles on sand art and sculpture by Sudarsan Pattnaik on several contemporary themes and issues over the years.

Some of the categories are Where Gold is Green and Blue, Sand for Social Causes, A World without borders, Saluting Talent, Emblazoned in the sands of times, Contours of Power, Sporting with Sand, A tribute to Nirbhaya, An artistic journey beyond sand, The Art of Narration and Celebrating life.

The 54-page book is priced at Rs 2,000, Sudarshan said.