Appaneravanda Kiran Subbaiah's Sculptures

RESUME OF Mr.KIRAN SUBBAIAH

  • He was born and brought up and is also residing in Mysore (Karnataka State) and he belongs to Appaneravanda family of Kodava community from the hilly regions of Kodagu District (Coorg) Karnataka State. He was born in the year 1950.
  • He was interested in drawing and painting since his early school days, and then gradually took to stone carving (inspired after visiting Belur and Halebeedu Temples a few times) and also to writing poems as his hobby in his college days (St.Philomena’s College, Mysore).
  • Later, he took a formal training in sculpture at Sri Chamarajendra Technical Institute (C.T.I.). The course was for five years. But after three years of Basic Training, he left the institute DISSATISFIED with the training in the year 1975.
  • As a first year student at C.T.I., he won the 1st prize in the Arts and Crafts Exhibition held at the Institute in 1972. And as a 3rd year student, he was selected to participate in the All India Sculptor’s Camp, sponsored by the Karnataka State LALITHA KALA ACADEMY, held at Bangalore in July 1974.
  • His sculptures were exhibited by the Coorg Association of Mysore in January 1976 and in the same year, he held a ONE MAN SHOW of his sculptures, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Mysore at the Rotary School.
  • He bagged the 1st prize at the Mysore Dasara Exhibition in 1978, and an award at the same exhibition in the year 1980. Two pieces of his sculpture were selected for the ELEVENTH ANNUAL ART EXHIBITION of Karnataka LALITHA KALA ACADEMY at Bangalore. And one of them was bought by the ACADEMY in the year 1980 – Later, i.e. after 1980, he decided not to enter any more competitions, but instead WORK HARDER and win the appreciation of the common man, which he considered as a BIGGER AND TRUTHFUL AWARD.
  • He accepted the offer to be a Committee Member of the Fine Arts Section of the Mysore Dasara Exhibition for the year 1981 and 1982. And in these two years, he fought and bought changes for the betterment of sculptors…..like individual stools for display, and the most important is in bringing about EQUALITY in the PRIZE AMOUNT between SCULPTORS and PAINTERS (until then, sculptors were given lesser prize amount).
  • He was selected to participate in the Sculptor’s camp by the State “LALITHA KALA ACADEMY” of Karnataka held at Belur in January1994.
  • He took part in the ‘Art Manpho 2011’ Art and Craft Exhibition from 8th to 18th Sept 2011 at Manpho Convention Centre, Veerannapalya, Nagawara Ring Road, Bangalore-45.
  • He is creating a master piece, a 135 headed Adishesha (5ft 1½ “ht) which will be sort of a world record when it is completed. It could find a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. This piece had got a lot of publicity in both the print and visual media in 2008… yet to get a buyer for that statue (now the present record is in Pashupathi Temple at Nepal of Lord Adishesha with 108 heads). 
Apart from all the above mentioned achievements, and also apart from many traditional and realistic sculptures which are in private collections of ART LOVERS in India and Abroad, Parks and in many Temples spread out in different parts of Karnataka State...etc.. The title “LIVING LEGEND” was given by the “Stona 2010 on their 9th International Granites and Stone fair held at Bangalore in 2010.