Nek Chand
Biography
Nek Chand (1924-2015) was one of India’s most celebrated artists, famous for his extraordinary creation in Chandigarh, India, known as the Rock Garden – over 2,000 statues set in 25 acres of landscaped gardens. His extraordinary creativity stemmed from his childhood. From the building of fantasy mud houses; to wondrous stories of Kings and Queens told to him by his mother; to figures made from bangles found near market stalls; to colourful scarecrows.
These early experiences in the idyllic Punjabi countryside changed in 1947 with India becoming the two separate states of India and Pakistan. Along with his Hindu family, Chand lost his home and his village. He eventually found work in the huge construction project of Chandigarh and his use of concrete developed from his observations of the construction methods used there.
In the early 1960’s Chand, then a transport official, began his creation by clearing a little patch of jungle to form a garden. He began by sculpting figures from recycled materials and gradually his garden grew. He built in secret at night, for fear the local authorities would find out about his illegal garden. When the authorities did find out however, they allowed him to continue his work, paying him a salary and providing him with a workforce.
Chand built one of the world’s most astounding creative achievements of modern times - The Rock Garden is an earthly paradise of rushing streams and great waterfalls, leafy trees and deep gorges that suddenly become wide expanses coupled with countless sculptures of people and animals. Today, The Rock Garden of Chandigarh is the second most visited site behind the Taj Mahal in India. Chand passed away in 2015 at the age of 90.
Courtesy of Raw Vision Magazine
Works
Click thumbnails to see larger images and more details.
Selected Exhibitions
2024 South Asian Modern Art 2024, Grosvenor Gallery, London
2024 Tropical Modernism, V&A, London
2023 Why We Linger, Darbyshire, London
2019 Outsider Art Fair (with Jennifer Lauren Gallery), Metropolitan Pavilion, New York
2017 The Road Less Traveled, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Wisconsin
2017 Exhibition #7, MONA + Museum of Everything, Tasmania
2016 Architecture Biennale, Venice
2015 Nek Chand, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester
2013 The Alternative Guide to the Universe, Hayward Gallery, London
2006 Concrete Kingdom: Sculptures by Nek Chand, American Folk Art Museum, New York
