N N Rimzon

Kerala

The power of art to influence and transform lives

N.N.Rimzon, one of India's leading sculptors, believes in the potential of art to transform.

Rimzon, who was born in the sleepy village of Kakkoor in Ernakulam district, says he realised the enormous possibilities of art when he joined the College of Fine Arts, Thiruvananthapuram, in 1976. He was in the first batch of the college. "It was like entering a new world," he recalls.

"Till then, I had only seen calendar pictures, read something about Ravi Varma and Picasso and heard about Van Gogh. The realisation that art is a big, vast, world, dawned there.

"All my class mates were dedicated. We were not bothered about 'future' after studies. We wanted to be artists; that was the sole purpose of life. There was a charged atmosphere, idealism in the air." Mr. Rimzon remembers the sense of collective effort that prevailed among them. It helped them continue in the field of art. "The sense of collectivity gave us the courage to leave home and family behind."

There was a yearning for freedom, for creative experiments in that post-Emergency period. He reminiscences that they were not bothered about 'earning' at that time. After graduation, Rimzon left for Baroda to do his postgraduation at the Faculty of Fine Arts, M.S. University. Later, he got an Inlaks scholarship, to London. "When I got the Inlaks, the biggest relief was that I could continue working for two more years, without bothering about anything."

In 1989, Rimzon returned to New Delhi where he held solo shows in 1991 and 1993.

So, why did he choose 'Sculpture,' at art school? Rimzon says from the very beginning, he had a way with three-dimensional form. However, the decisive suggestion to choose sculpture came from Kanayi Kunhiraman, sculptor, who was teaching at the Government College of Fine Arts.

Rimzon says it took 10 years for his work to reach a stable position. "While in Thiruvananthapuram, I had good skill. But, I realised that skill alone was not enough. Developing a language was important. I could not do anything concrete during the Thiruvananthapuram days. It was at Baroda that my works grew mature." His pathbreaking work, 'Man in the Chalk Circle,' was made at Baroda. He was 27 then.

In 1986, when installation was just beginning to be accepted in India, he exhibited a work of installation at the Sixth Triennale International in New Delhi.

He has participated in many exhibitions in and outside India, including New York, Amsterdam and Brisbane among others.

His major shows include the Venice Biennale, 1993, the Second Asia Pacific Triennale of Contemporary Art, Queensland Art Gallery, 1996, Stadelijk Museum, Amsterdam and 'Edge of Desire: Recent Art in India,' Queen's Art Museum, New York, 2005.
Renu Ramanath

(The Hindu, Sunday, August 20, 2006)