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Malaysian Indian sculptor
specialises in Chinese statues too
Kuala
Lumpur, Nov 17 (IANS) Making statues of Ganesha, Buddha or
Chinese deity Kwan Tei -- all come naturally to Malaysian
Indian sculptor V.B. Kumar.
His
services are much sought after by caretakers of temples of
different faiths in Kuantan, capital of Pahang state, or in
nearby Kemaman in Terengganu.
Kumar
admits he is paid handsomely, although that has not brought
him much fame, says The Star newspaper.
After
all, who would have known that most of the statues of deities
in the famed Lao Zi Temple and Sun San Seen See Temple are
works of art by this ethnic Indian.
Among
some of the sculptures which he single-handedly completed
were the statue of Lao Zi measuring seven metres tall, the
brass idol of the Goddess of Mercy, the 18 disciples of Buddha,
the prosperity Buddha, Eight Fairies, Lord Ganesan, Sei Min
Fatt, Kwan Tai Yeh, a mermaid and images from Journey to the
West which includes the Monkey God.
Kumar,
54, is now working on a Chinese deity called "Kwan Tai
riding a horse" at the Lao Zi Temple.
He
said he started to work as a sculptor when he completed his
Form Five education.
"I
love art and had a very keen interest in drawing and sculpting
figurines, especially Chinese deities.
"The
fact that I married a Chinese further improved my knowledge
on the culture and religion," he said in an interview
to the paper.
Kumar
is married to Leong Yik Fong, 50, and the couple have three
children. However, it is only his youngest son B. Kiran Kumar,
18, who is interested in the art and will most likely follow
in his footsteps.
Kumar
said his profession was a tough and challenging job which
required a good amount of imagination, appreciation of art
and patience.
"To
be honest, I did not attend any professional training overseas
or locally.
"There
is just no school to teach you sculpting but it was my keen
interest that kept me going, and along the way, I learnt and
perfected my art," he said.
He
said the time taken to work on a figurine varied. His speciality
was in creating figurines made of wood and cement.
The
shortest time he had completed a task was one week.
"So
far, the Lao Zi statue has taken me the longest - six months,"
he said.
Indo-Asian
News Service
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