Padma Shri Sudarsan Pattnaik Internationally acclaimed Odia sand artist has added another accolade to his collection by winning the Golden Sand Master Award and a gold medal at the International Sand Sculpture Championship held at the iconic Peter and Paul Fortress in Saint Petersburg, Russia on Friday.
According to the report, in this recent competition, held from July 4th to 12th, he created a sand sculpture of a 12 feet chariot of Mahaprabhu Jagannath and His great devotee Balaram Das, which earned him the gold medal on the final day of the event. A total of 21 contestants participated in the competition.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi congratulated the eminent sand sculptor for his achievement of winning a gold medal at the international platform. CM Majhi stated that Pattnaik’s talent has brought pride and recognition to Odisha and the entire country. The Chief Minister expressed hope that Pattnaik will continue to gain more fame in the future.
After winning the Gold medal Pattnaik informed about the event on social media X, “Jai Jagannath, My sand chariot of Mahaprabhu Jagannath and His great devotee Balaram Das, Sculpture Won the Golden Sand Master Award with a Gold medal at the International Sand Sculpture Championship/festival 2024 at St.Petersburg, Russia”.’
Jai Jagannath ?
My sand chariot of Mahaprabhu Jagannath and His great devotee Balaram Das , Sculpture Won Golden Sand Master Award with Gold medal at International sand sculpture championship/festival 2024 at St.Petersburg, #Russia. pic.twitter.com/CEAiv4FK5d— Sudarsan Pattnaik (@sudarsansand) July 12, 2024
Indian Embassy in Russia congratulated the Indian Sand Sculpture on X, “@sudarsansand makes India proud by winning the #GoldMedal @ ‘International Sand Sculpture Championship’ in cultural capital #StPeterburg, Russia. The iconic #PeterAndPaul Fortress held the competition from 4-12 July with the participation of 21 Master Artists from across the world.”
@sudarsansand makes India proud by winning the #GoldMedal @ ‘International Sand Sculpture Championship’ in cultural capital #StPeterburg, Russia. The iconic #PeterAndPaul Fortress held the competition from 4-12 July with participation of 21 Master Artists from across the world. pic.twitter.com/ESMpKD8v9j
— India in St. Petersburg (@indianconsspb) July 12, 2024
Born on April 15, 1977, in a middle-class family in Puri, Pattnaik began sculpting in sand at the age of seven. He established the Golden Sand Art Institute in Puri in 1995, which was later renamed as Sudarsana Sand Art Institute. The institution works to preserve and develop the ancient art of sand sculpting, which dates back nearly 700 years to the time of Balaram Das in Puri. Many students from the institute have gained international fame.
Pattnaik has won numerous national and international competitions. He won the Padma Shri award in 2014. He was first appointed as the President of Odisha Academy of Fine Arts in 2018 and was re-appointed in 2021.
