A portion of the tourism complex near Khandagiri in Bhubaneswar. It will be used as the art gallery. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, March 16: Two galleries were promised to the state’s art fraternity over two years ago, but no signs of work are visible yet. A culture department official, however, said the facilities would come up “very soon”.

Officials of the culture department keep saying that work will shortly begin while artists rue the government’s “false promises” since Odisha has no public art gallery yet.

The art galleries had been planned at two sites in the city — a major one at old Sanskriti Bhavan of the state museum at Kalpana Square and a smaller one at the under-construction tourism complex of the culture department in Khandagiri. The three-storey structure of the Sanskriti Bhavan building was to have various galleries on each floor, while at the Khandagiri tourism complex, one hall will be dedicated to display the traditional and modern arts of Odisha.

However, no signs of groundwork have been visible at these sites so far. Veteran artist and art historian Dinanath Pathy, former president of the Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, and even the Odisha Lalit Kala Akademi, said despite having been a storehouse of arts for centuries, Odisha did not offer a visitor an amiable ambience to enjoy art works.

“To view genuine art, one can probably visit the state Lalit Kala Akademi gallery in the Odisha State Museum, the Rashtriya Lalit Kala Akademi gallery at the Regional Art Centre, and then, the privately-run Odisha Modern Art Gallery or Suvadra Art Gallery. None of these, however, fulfil the basic aspirations and modern facilities that a standard art gallery should provide. None of these have the architectural compatibility for spatial balancing and proper lighting or storage facilities to hold the collection,” said Pathy.

It is high time that Bhubaneswar should have a gallery (or a museum) for contemporary Odia art. If the state government could provide space, the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, could open their branch here as they had done in Mumbai and Bangalore, he said.

Another renowned artist Jagdish Kanungo, who is also a former president of the Odisha Lalit Kala Akademi, said the delay was indeed disappointing. “No doubt Odisha needs a gallery. But, why these false promises? Why cannot the culture department give us a specific date when the project would be ready? If they are not capable of giving art its due respect, they must not make false declarations,” he said.

He further added that during his tenure as president of the state Akademi in 2010-11, around Rs 70 lakh had been given to the culture department. Yet, no steps were taken to build the proposed gallery.

“Moreover, whenever they design the gallery, they must take suggestions from the senior and contemporary artists of the state. But, I have never seen such an approach from the administration,” Kanungo said.

Asked how long it would take for the proposed galleries to come up, a senior official said: “Very soon!”

“The master plan is ready and the department has received Rs 8 crore to convert the old Sanskriti Bhavan building into a state-of-the-art gallery. It has been lying vacant for long and is in need of renovation. The Odisha Tourism Development Corporation has been given the execution responsibility of the project,” said culture department director Sushil Kumar Das.

Architect of the master plan S.S. Ray said the initial layout of the gallery was ready. The ground floor of the three-storey building will have a conference hall for art workshops and discussions, while there will also be a gallery to organise art exhibitions and sale artworks. It will be rented out at a subsidised rate.

On the first and second floor, Odia artists’ works owned by the Odisha Lalit Kala Akademi and the state museum will be exhibited, he said.