Konark, 26 November 2012: As many as 20 Indian and 10 foreign artists will be participating in the second edition of the International Sand Art festival to be held on the Chandrabhaga beach, Konark, coinciding with the Konark Dance Festival 2012.
The foreign artists participating in the festival are Benjamin Probanza from Mexico; Etual Ojeda from Spain; JOOheng Tan from Singapore; Benoit Dutherage from France; Elisabeth Kristensen from Norway; Ulrich from Germany; Damian Van Der Velden from Netherland, Brian Turnbough and Russell Lee Croft from the United States of America.
Benjamin Probanza from Mexico is a well known sand artist who has been winning recognitions for his art since 1997. He has participated in sand art competitions in China, Singapore, Canada, Holland, Spain, United States of America, Germany, Columbia, Indonesia, Dinamarca, Belgica etc. He also does live shows with drawings of sand and light. He won the 2003 Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award.
Etual Ojeda from Spain started very early developing his skill for sculpting. Etual has won a number of international sand sculpting contests. He has also been a teacher in some seasonal Sand Sculpting Workshops in Las Canters Beach, Gran Canaria.
JOOheng Tan, Singaporean, with a decade’s worth of sand sculpting experience, is a veteran when it comes to coaxing giant masterpieces from mere grains of sand. JOOheng began sand sculpting in 1997as a hobby, participating in several small events locally. In 1999, he was invited by the then-President of the World Sand Sculptors Association to participate in several international sand sculpting festivals and competitions abroad which eventually led to a full blown career and love for the art.
Katsuhiko Chaen is from Japan and began sculpting in 1987. He has won a number of competitions, exhibitions and festivals across the globe. He was featured in the TV commercial film and posters for Japanese Derby Races.
Benoit Dutherage is a sand, ice and snow sculptor from France. He was a chef who discovered his affinity for sand art and started sculpting in 2000. He own a company called “Made in Sand” in Sweden.
Elisabeth Kristensen from Kristiansand is an experienced snow sculptor. As a land art artist, Kristensen has made a mark with her snow and sand sculptures. She is currently the project manager for Sand Sculpture Kristiansand.
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Damian Van Der Velden from Netherland did her education from The Royal Academy of Fine Art, Hague. She has participated in a number of solo and group exhibitions across the globe.
Brian Turnbough (USA) has been sculpting sand professionally since 2000. He made his first sculpture with sculptor Ted Siebert of the Sand Sculpture Company while attending Eastern Illinois University majoring in painting and drawing. Since that time Turnbough has worked with the Sand Sculpture Company and created hundreds of sculptures across the globe for festivals and events. Last year, Turnbough took home his first championship at the American Championships of Sand Sculpture. Additionally, he has competed in team sand sculpture competitions as a member of teams “Sandboxers” and “Totally in Sand’.
Russell Croft from the United States of America has been practicing sand sculpting for the past 15 years and has won a number of awards for his sculptures in different parts of the world. He was also featured in “Sand Masters” a reality based television show.
Klaus Ulrich from Germany is well known for his creations and has a list of awards to his name.
Our ‘Brand Ambassador for International Sand Art Festival” Shri Sudarsan Pattanaik said “All the participants that have gathered for the festival are champions of their art. The artists will be provided with the necessary materials and they would be working on their creations since November 28, 2012. The exhibition will be open to the public from December 1, 2012. We are confident of putting up a spectacular show this year”.
Vaibhav Chandrakant Katwate and Laxmi Nauraten Goud from Maharashtra, Ballabha Mohapatra, Sridhar Das, Ranjan Kumar Ganguli and Subala Moharana from Odisha are some of the eminent artists from India participating in the event.
Besides the sand art exhibition, a national-level competition will also be held where national and international sand maestros will battle it out for prize money of Rs 1, 00,000.
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