Bhubaneswar, Sept. 18: Students of Dhauli College of Art and Crafts have set up an art installation that have blended the festivals of Ganesh Chaturthi, Vishwakarma Puja and Nuakhai together.

Around eight students of the sculpture department have created the structure at a five-day camp held on the campus. The 10-ft high sculpture represents both Lord Ganesh and Lord Vishwakarma and has been made of pulses and rice representing Nuakhai, the agrarian festival of the state, which falls today.

Around 20kg pulses such as moong dal, masoor dal, toor dal, chana dal and rice have been used to make the idol. This apart, a number of spices such as jeera and fennel seeds have also been used.

While the left half of the idol is of Ganesh, the right half is of Vishwakarma. A clear demarcation has been made between the two portions using orange and yellow pulses.

"This year is rare as all these festivals have fallen on two consecutive days. We, therefore, thought of celebrating them together," said Chandan Samal, the head of the institute's sculpture department.

For the students, the camp was a learning experience. "All of us came together every morning and worked till late in the evening to finish the idol. Being art students, this was our way of invoking the lords and being a part of traditional festivities of the sate," said Subhashree Jaysingh, a participant.

The students of the college have been making art installations on various occasions. On August 1, they set up an installation of Mahatma Gandhi's Dandi March at the Dhauli gram panchayat office to showcase India's struggle for Independence.

Earlier, they had created a 12ft sculpture to portray the pain and anguish of the common man. They had used around seven stone pieces that were put together to form a structure where each of the stones looked like human faces with each conveying a form of expression such as doubt, fear and anger.

Such camps aim to hone the students' skills. "We try to give them as much exposure as possible. Our students have created a number of interesting art installations, and most of them have been displayed on the college campuses," said Samal.

At present, the students are carving a life-size figure of Mahatma Gandhi that will be set up at a village near Tankapani Road. The college will also set up a gallery on its campus to display the portraits of the state's freedom fighters, painted by the students.