Bengaluru: VRC Shekhar is a good old veteran, a professional name in the field of fine arts with a prolonged innings in diverse fields like water colour, oil paint, print and cartoon, just to name a few. He could be 72 in terms of ageing, but such an advanced stage in life is not at all a hindrance for him to be active in personal, professional and public life.
A long innings with the Cartoonists Association: Although and all along, VRC Shekhar had been involved with lines, colours and paintings, his contribution to the Cartooning sphere is amazing. He happened to be the President of the Karnataka Cartoonists Association for almost 15 years after the tragic demise of S V Padmanabh, a talented cartoonist.
Several programs from the last 15 years: According to VRC Shekhar, several programs have been held for the past 15 years. Among them are the Cartoonists camp in 2017 and a two-day conference on behalf of the Kannada and Culture Department, Government of Karnataka. A cartoonist's camp and felicitation program has been held for three years at Alva's institution in Mudubidare. Likewise, many exhibitions have been held with the patronage of the Health and Transport Departments, Government of Karnataka and the Election Commission of India.
A gifted artist of the picturesque terrain: Born and brought up in Sringeri, the Shaivite pilgrimage centre, bestowed with picturesque surroundings, perhaps it was no wonder that VRC Shekhar chose to opt for a different career with pencil, brush and colours, unlike others of his age. However, it was no easy task, as there were not enough opportunities like now to pursue a career in fine arts.
Correspondence course to begin with: To start with, he did a correspondence course, ACB. Thanks to the association with the renowned art giant, MTV Acharya, who was instrumental in setting up the ACB, the interest and enthusiasm of VRC Shekhar took off in leaps and bounds to reach new heights in his art journey.
Under the tutelage of V B Hiregoudar: Later, VRC Shekhar joined the Applied Art course at the University College of Fine Arts in Davanagere under the tutelage of V B Hiregoudar, then the Principal of the college. He noticed the brush stroke mastery of VRC Shekhar in his landscape works and encouraged him to continue further. Over a period of time, VRC Shekhar became a versatile landscape artist with his signature brush stroke and later came to be recognised for the same. He later did a PG Diploma from the Karnataka Chitra Kala Parishat in Bengaluru.
Cover page and artworks for Durgasthamana novel: Veteran novelist T. R. Subbarao, popularly renowned as Tarasu, happened to visit the Sringeri pilgrimage centre. A relative accompanied the lad, VRC Shekhar and introduced him to the visiting novelist, who was known for his classic social and historical literary works. Then Tarasu was based in Mysuru and was carried away by the artistic talents of the young VRC Shekhar. He suggested the latter to keep visiting Mysuru, wherein both had discussions on art and allied subjects. Thanks to such frequent interactions, Tarasu assigned VRC Shekhar to design the cover page and also contribute sketches to the inside pages about Chitradurga, for his 'Durgasthamana' historic novel.
Remarkable progress in etching: VRC Shekhar, during his early stage of professional career, had also evinced a serious interest in etching. He also sent several of his etching works to different competitions and was rewarded with several awards. This zeal and enthusiasm also paid him back in the form of a one-year research fellowship from the Central Lalit Kala Academy. He went to the then Madras and did seascapes, sitting on the seashore.
Painting for more than 50+ years! He has completed the golden jubilee in sketching, painting, and cartooning and continues to do so to date. His 'Shringa Giri', a collection of watercolour landscapes, has been exhibited in several exhibitions across the country, including the state and national Lalil kala Academies and interestingly, continues to be exhibited to date!
Awards all over the country: He has also been a recipient of numerous awards at Mysuru Dasara, All India Exhibition of the Karnataka Chitra Kala Parishat, Amritsar, New Delhi, and Kolkata, just to name a few of them.
One-man shows: Apart from the prestigious Jehangir Art Gallery in Mumbai, he has held several one-man exhibitions in New Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, etc. He has also exhibited his collection of cartoons in a one-man cartoon show at the Indian Cartoon Gallery in Bengaluru.
Collections in state-owned and private galleries: His landscapes, graphics and sculpture master pieces are proudly collected at several state government-owned and the central government-owned bodies, Academies, Museums, apart from private ones. From 1969 onwards, his thousands of cartoons have been published in Praja Vani, Sudha, Mayura, Udayavani, Taranga, Tushara, Utthana, Samayukta Karnataka, and Karmaveera, among many a other daily and periodical.
Office bearer of organisations: VRC Shekhar worked with the Praja Mata weekly from 1987 to 1992. At the behest of late M S Nanjudarao, he worked as a faculty member of the Karnataka Chitra Kala Parishat from 1992 to 2013. He remained the President of Karnataka Cartoonists Association from 2016 to 2025. Presently, he is enjoying retirement life with his wife, Vijayalakshmi, son, daughter-in-law and grandson.
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