Art is not everyone’s cup of tea. Only a chosen few manage to carve out a special space in the hearts of art aficionados. Panchanan Samal, an acclaimed contemporary artist and Principal of Dhauli College of Art and Craft, is certainly one of them. His paintings have been exhibited in several parts of India and in countries like Switzerland and Australia. Samal has been felicitated by South Central Zone Cultural Centre of Nagpur, Swami Vivekananda University of Meerut and Hyderabad-based Kala Mitra Foundation and several other organisations for his exploits in the field of art. Therefore, it came as no surprise when the Orissa government selected him as the Secretary of Odisha Lalit Kala Academy (OLKA). In a candid chat with Sunday POST, Samal shares his thoughts on some pertinent issues. Excerpts:
SP: What was your first reaction after being nominated as the Secretary of Odisha Lalit Kala Akademi? Did you expect the appointment?
Frankly speaking, it came as a surprise for me. I learnt about my appointment from a fellow artist Gourang Bariki when I was working on a painting. It was certainly a pleasant development as it was beyond my expectation. I would like to express my sincere gratitude towards the state government for recognising my efforts and offering me an opportunity to do something for the artist fraternity. I can only say that it came at the right time.
SP: What are the major issues of the Akademi at the moment and how would you address them?
It has not even been a month since I took the charge. I will surely try my level best to sort out the important issues, if any. As we all know Dharmapada Puraskar is the State’s highest award in the field of Art and Sculpture instituted by the Akademi. OLKA has stopped felicitating artists with Dharmapada awards for the past few years owing to controversy. Last year, it conferred the awards on artists for seven years from 2009 to 2015 thanks to the efforts of a bunch of artists and I was one of them. I will try to regularize the awards during my tenure.
SP: In this digital age our artists are quite aware of the global art scene. How is the Akademi planning to match the global standard of contemporary art?
I have planned to introduce ‘Digital Art Talk’ where we would like to invite international artists. It will be a platform where the ideas between artists of Odisha and those coming from other countries can be exchanged. Besides, there is a plan in place to launch an online international art exhibition to showcase and sell the works of Odisha-born artists.
SP: The bye law of the Akademi was framed about 60 years back and the objectives with which it was constituted have been accomplished. Don’t you think this is time to revise the byelaw to achieve greater goals?
I haven’t given a thought to this issue. I think it is a policy decision and will take it up with concerned authorities if the need arises.
SP: What is the best compliment you have received so far?
My grandfather was a sculptor. I remember I used to watch him patiently when he worked. At that time I was in Class III. One day I went to our paddy field and while playing with mud, I ended up sculpting a small earthen idol of Lord Shiva. My grandfather looked at my creation in disbelief. Congratulating me, he said ‘You are a born-artist and I am nothing compared to you’. His words made a lasting impact on me and they inspired me a lot to carve a space in this field. That was the best compliment I have ever received.
SP: Who or what has been the biggest influence in your life as a painter and the reason thereof?
Painter, author and art historian Dinanath Pathy has influenced me a lot. His style was completely different. As I belong to Balasore, he used to call me ‘Balasoria’. When I was studying in BK College of Art and Crafts, Pathy Sir’s tag lines used to be ‘Balasoria can make anything possible’. His words of encouragement boosted my confidence to always give my best. Pathy Sir was later posted as secretary of Lalit Kala Akademi in New Delhi and Bhubaneswar. He was also the founding principal of the Bibhuti Kanungo College of Art and Crafts. He was a true inspiration.
As the secretary of the Akademi, what are your future plans to help out the struggling and upcoming artists?
Plans are afoot to open branches of Odisha Lalit Kala Akademi at several parts of the state like Balasore and Sambalpur so that young artists can participate in the exhibitions hosted by branches of OLKA. Besides, if everything goes smoothly, the Akademi will host an international art fest to promote cultural exchange programmes.Besides, we are also planning to bring out an artists’ directory.
Rashmi Rekha Das, OP
