Artists Directory >S. Kanniappan

On Himself - "As a sculptor I hail from a traditional teaching artisan family. My ancestors had served in the College of Arts and Crafts since the British period. The so-called modern movement in India is only a feeble echo of what has been happening in the west since the mid - 19th century. There is no need for Indians to follow in the footsteps of foreigners. We have the ability and resources to go ahead on our own. Our tradition is a treasure trove of all that constitutes creative art at its greatest. It has all the essential inputs such as; space, volume, movement, rhythm, line and colour. They are all there and a lot more. Moreover, surrealism, cubism, distortion, simplification, etc., have been in existence in Indian art for ages. As for sculpture, any one with good drawing can come up in a big way. Drawing is the mother of all arts, particularly sculpture. It's a pity that neither critics nor artists seem to realize the importance of this self-evident truth."

Chronology

Born: 1932
1950: Diploma in Crafts, (sheet metal) from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Chennai
1975: I Class diploma in Fine Arts (Sculpture), Government College of Arts and Crafts, Chennai.

Camps

State Sculpture Camp, Ooty;
All India Sculptors' Camps, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Jammu and Bhubaneswar;
Participated in several other camps held at Lucknow, Thiruvananthapuram, Coimbatore, Thiruchirapalli and Kumbakonam.

Awards and Honours

Recipient of Emeritus scholarship from Govt. of India
Fellowship conferred by Tamil Nadu Ovia Nunkalai Kuzhu, 1988
National Award, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, 1982
Ceramic Award, 1963, 1964 and 1965
Freedom Silver Medal, at the Asia '72 Exhibition, New Delhi for Sculpture
Annual State Award, Tamil Nadu Ovia Nunkalai Kuzhu, 1976 and 1980

Collections

National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi
Tamil Nadu Ovia Nunkalai Kuzhu, Chennai
Contemporary Art Gallery, Government Museum, Chennai
Regional Centre, Lalit Kala Akadmei, New Delhi

"With meticulous attention, Kannippan made clay come to life and lifted ceramics from a state of ordinary crudity to a level of high artistry. The nature of his personal touch, demanding and vibrant, increasingly defined itself and apart from technique there was something else - a happy blend of the traditional and modern - that carved out for ceramics a vital position in the lives of the people. For him clay became as much a material of necessity as choice and though the medium he used was impertinent the shapes he created glowed. The surfaces expressed an inner life. His works during this period provides a benchmark and for three consecutive years he received the First Prize in the ceramic ware exhibitions conducted by the Society of Ceramics, Madras - For a decade up to 1978 Kanniappan's sensitive fingers twisted, bent, folded, squeezed, wrapped and slapped metal sheets, combining them with glass and plastic to fabricate his sculptures. He used both traditional and modern concepts and techniques to invent what he wanted. Sometimes it was a flying bird, sometimes an agile snake, sometimes a skating rink. At other times, it was just the concept progress and prosperity or injustice, or a mere construction done in a manner that would lead one to imagine space, winding staircases, marble flooring and movement of people inside. Often it was a futuristic idea captured in a sheet metal which, through the artist's individuality, held forth a highly transparent message in exciting depths."-  Anjali Sircar

Address: No.7, 1st Main Street, St. Anthony Nagar, Thiruninravur - 602 024. Tel: 639 05 90