An evening with Mr. Sudarsan Pattnaik

On Friday, December 17, we had a very interesting session by Mr. Sudarsan Pattnaik, the famous, sand artist from Puri, Odisha.

About Mr Pattnaik

Mr Pattnaik was born in Puri, Odisha in India. He was the youngest of three brothers in his family. His childhood was full of hardships. The turning point came when Mr Pattnaik started sculpting images on sand from the age of seven. He has since designed hundreds of sand art and emerged as one of the globally renowned artists in this field.

Mr Pattnaik’s sculptures have covered various socially relevant themes: the pandemic, environmental crisis, famous festivals, national integrity and religious tolerance. His work during the time of the 2004 tsunami was acknowledged all over the world. So much so that when he visited Germany a year later, people showed him local newspaper clippings of the coverage his work had received. He has also drawn attention to the refugee crisis with his work on the Syrian toddler, Alan Kurdi, whose body was found on the beach. Mr Pattnaik has also spoken out against terrorism through his sand sculptures.

Mr Pattnaik, a self-made artist, has won many national and international awards for his creative designs and has established various World records. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2014, the fourth highest civilian award in India, in 2014 for his contribution to sand art. He was also felicitated and awarded by the President of India, Smt. Pratibha Patil at Puri beach.

Mr Pattnaik received the Young Indian leadership award 2010 from CNN IBN. "Limca Book of Records" honoured him during the celebration of sixty years of India's Independence in 2007, in New York.

Mr Pattnaik is the Brand ambassador for National Aluminum Company Limited (NALCO) and the international sand art festival of Odisha. He is the President of Lalit Kala Akademi, Odisha.

About his work and philosophy

Mr Pattnaik is an extraordinarily humble and grounded person with a very positive mindset and a profound sense of gratitude to the public and his beloved homeland, Puri and Lord Jagannath for all his great achievements. He has a sincere belief in the holy sand of Puri (which he rates above the sand found in any other beach across the world, though he admits that all sands have their own unique features). In fact, Mr Pattnaik finds it difficult to go to sleep without looking at the ocean once. He can discern each wave in the ocean! As Prasad later summarized, Mr Pattnaik’s strong belief and his ability to connect his work with his belief explains to a large extent his extraordinary success as an artist.

Mr Pattnaik has always believed in spreading positive messages through his art. He believes that any work of art done with a positive mindset will have a great impact. Mr Pattnaik believes all of us (whether we are writers, painters, engineers or mangers) can do this though the medium may differ from person to person. He is convinced that everyone has creativity within. This creativity can be tapped to send positive messages, serve others, create social awareness, remind people about their duties and foster cultural unity. As one participant put it well, Mr Pattnaik’s love for humanity is profound.

The early days

Mr Pattnaik’s home is close to the famous Puri Jagannath temple. He was a child labourer and dropped out of school at an early age due to financial problems. He realized that he had a deep interest in drawing and painting. But he did not have the money to buy the required materials. Mr Pattnaik, as Sudhakar later summarized, did not give up.The beach provided him a great opportunity. He viewed the sea as his mother, his fingers as the brush and the beach as the canvas. As he started displaying his works of art on the beach, big crowds began to gather and appreciate his work. Mr Pattnaik felt very encouraged. There was no looking back.

At first, when Mr Pattnaik started getting invitations to take part in competitions abroad, people did not believe him. But he drew inspiration from his creativity and has since travelled abroad more than 100 times to take part in various competitions. Most of his awards have been based on his messaging more than any other factor. Thus, in Boston, he won the People’s choice award for his message on plastic pollution.

Objects made of sand do not last for long. How do you deal with this problem?

Mr Pattnaik did not get into the technicalities. Rather, he emphasised that it is the spirit with which we do something that is more important. Whatever we do, we must do with a positive mindset and the right spirit. We should not worry about what we have done today. We should think of what we can do even better tomorrow. As Sudhakar summarized, life is transitory like sand. If we blink, the moment is gone.

What goes into a great piece of sand sculpture?

We must first visualize what we want to create. Then we must draw a sketch on paper. Then comes the actual work of sand sculpting. Sand is of course a different kind of medium. We must figure out how much sand is needed, where more sand has to be put and so on. Every beach is good in its own way. But like a true patriot, Dr Pattnaik feels Indian sand is of the best quality.

On his teachers

Mr Pattnaik believes that parents, teachers and the general public/society are our teachers. He has drawn a lot of inspiration from people in general and tourists in particular, who see his works of art and the feedback he has received from them. These days, Mr Pattnaik is also learning a lot from his students at his training institute.

On using art to change the mindset of people

Mr Pattnaik feels that everyone is at heart an artist. We all have creativity buried within us. It is all about finding it and channelizing it. Only the medium varies from person to person. Once we find our creativity, we will be able to come up with the messaging required to drive change.

On generating livelihood through art

All of us have the necessary skills. But some of us are fortunate to also have the certification. We must look for ways to certify the skills of people. Then they will find it easier to get jobs. Think of the women who do Rangoli. Their skills are in no way inferior to those of a professional artist. If they had some certification, they could monetize this skill. Mr Pattnaik shared his experience of working with weavers of the famous Sambalpuri sarees, raising the profile of their village and enabling them to market their wares better. Mr Pattnaik admitted that education and certification can give us the edge, help us to make ourselves financially secure and also create a sense of self-esteem and self-identity.

As a step in this direction and to protect the tradition of sand sculpting, Mr Pattnaik has established "The Golden Sand Art Institute” at Puri, the first of its kind in India to help students learn and develop sand art as a professional art form. Students from India and abroad are enrolled for projects, regular and short-term courses. Mr Pattnaik’s objective is to create professional artists through a regular curriculum in this school of art and culture in a Gurukul concept. He has published a book regarding SAND ART. Mr Pattnaik is in the process of launching a well-designed course on sand sculpting.

On concentration

To achieve anything meaningful in life, concentration is a must. Before we start something, we must recognize the power within ourselves, close our eyes and think positively about what we are trying to do. This will automatically help us to remain focused on what we are trying to do.

On mental health

Covid has created a lot of mental pressure. Art by unleashing our creativity can be a useful antidote. Art can provide peace to our mind, body and soul. During the pandemic, “house talent” has blossomed. Confined to their homes for large stretches of time, many people have taken to painting, designing new objects and so on. More generally, a few minutes spent every day in pursuing our (forgotten) hobbies and interests can help us to relax. By reflecting on the good things we have done during the day, we can have good sleep and cope with the mental pressure.

Concluding notes

This was indeed a different kind of webinar by an extraordinary artist who has overcome major adversities and hardships during this childhood days. Mr Pattnaik’s positive attitude, love for humanity and his great humility made it a particularly inspiring session.

Great moderation and paraphrasing and translation (A large part of the session was in Hindi.) by Prasad and Sudhakar.

We thank Dr. Vedpuriswar for bringing out the highlights in the form of this note