Pramod Kamble is a prominent artist, painter and sculptor based in Ahmednagar. Kamble is famous for his eco-friendly idols, with NGOs encouraging Ganapatis created of clay and painted in realistic colours for a safer festival. He guides in creating such eco-friendly idols during the Ganesh carnival. His eco-friendly Ganapatis noted because that reduces pollution.
Pramod Kamble comes from an artist’s family; the artist’s grandfather was a sculptor and painter who made figures and paintings for the village temple and carnivals. He was also a specialist weaver in his village, and Pramod’s father was an art educator in the first art academy in Ahmednagar.
Career and Works
Pramod Kamble starts his artistic career very early. He plays with clay from a river near his home, and he eventually won the National Talent Scholarship for sculpture when he was 13. After this, Kamble joined a Foundation course and an Art Teacher Diploma in Pragat Kala Mahavidyalaya, Ahmednagar, then Sir J.J. School of Arts, Mumbai and graduated with a gold medal. Pramod Kamble worked as an Assistant Art Director at a film studio in Mumbai. He expected to become an ‘Art director’ in the Bollywood industry but ignored it to return to his native Ahmednagar and continue the art practice.
Pramod Kamble succeeded in various esteemed honours while going through his academics, such as the Bombay Art Society and the Art Society Of India. Kamble did not limit himself to sculpture alone; he became equally adaptable in painting and used all the open media. He tested his skills through diverse media. At the beginning of his career, the people of Ahmednagar didn’t know to appreciate Art; for them, Art was to make sign boards for vada pav carts or design wedding cards. He then proceeded to make sketches and portraits for people—Pramod Kamble made himself an artist in a city which zero appreciation of Art.
Pramod Kamble started a studio in Ahmednagar and started to do artwork as a professional artist.
Notable works
After the studio was set up, Pramod Kamble started to engage with large-scale works, including portraits, creative paintings and sculptures. Demonstration of a six ft. clay panel of Belur Krishna to the Russian diplomats who visited his college. Theme memorials of scientists viz. Albert Einstein, Newton, Darwin, and Aryabhatt in a residential project in Pune. Ten giant sets, which include portraits and statues of marvellous size on the life of Swami Narayan at Swami Narayan temple at Baroda, are the most significant works of Pramod Kamble. Kamble sculpted 52 life-size models of wild animals to be put on a permanent Installation in Madhya Pradesh, Pune, Mumbai, Nasik, and many more are on the list to quote.
Donation sketches and environment initiative
Pramod Kamble used to make sketches to donate money for calamities and other disasters. He gathers money from everyday sketching from the street and contributes the money to relief funds for the Killari earthquake, Bhuj earthquake, and Kargil war, respectively. Parallelly, Kamble starts creating idols from natural materials, usually clay idols, to be installed in every home during the Ganapati celebration and, through this creative workshop, leads the making of Ganapati models for each person partaking in the workshop and instructs them to create Ganapati from natural materials, brings more vibrancy and delight in the festival.
Sare Jahan se Accha
Pramod Kamble started a project in 1996 and finished it in 1997 titled Sare Jahan Se Accha. It’s a 70 ft pencil sketch mural that depicts the Bharat Mata (goddess of Indian Independence) and 500 great people born out of Indian culture. This project, Kamble, starts and finishes to tribute to 50 years of Indian Independence, portraying sages, deities, freedom fighters, Bharat Ratna awardees, Dadasaheb Phalke awardees, GyanPeeth awardees, Param Vir Chakra recipients and the masters in diverse fields of life that encloses sports-persons, musicians, dancers, painters, theatre personalities, singers, social activists and industrialists.
