Art for the benefit of tortoises

Kurma, an art showcase, is raising funds for the upkeep of six pairs of tortoises at the Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad

Thanks to an art show titled Kurma, six pairs of tortoises in the Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad, will soon receive funding for their upkeep. Among the tortoises that stand to gain from the art show are a pair of Galapagos tortoises aged above 120 and a pair of Aldabra tortoises that are over 90.

Hyderabad-based artist and curator Bolgum Nagesh Goud will be presenting Kurma, an exhibition of tortoise sculptures painted by 15 well-known Indian artists, at the State Gallery of Art, Hyderabad, on January 21 and 22: “We have already sold 12 of the sculptures to buyers who showed keen interest. We will be donating ₹2.5 to ₹3.5 lakh, once the sale is completed,” says Goud.

The artists who have painted the three-dimensional fibreglass tortoise sculptures measuring 27x13x16 inches are Jagdish Chinthala, Bose Krishnamachari, Laxman Aelay, Srinivas Reddy B, Subrata Das, Sachin Jaltare, Ramesh Gorjala, Vinita Dasgupta, Ganapati Hegde, Siddharth Shingade, Meenakshi Jha Banerjee, Bandana Kumari, Arpitha Reddy, Bhushaiah and Nagesh Goud.