Nek Chand, the man behind India’s Rock Garden in Chandigarh dies at 90

NEW DELHI: Nek Chand, an Indian artist who toiled in secret for nearly two decades to create a sculpture garden that later became a top tourist attraction, died on Friday aged 90.

Chand died in hospital in the northern city of Chandigarh after suffering a heart attack, his son Anuj Saini said by phone. He will be cremated here on Saturday.

His works are on display in museums around the world, but he is best known for creating the Chandigarh Rock Garden — a 20-acre (eight-hectare) garden filled with sculptures made from the rubble of the city’s construction.

Students take a tour of the Nek Chand Rock Garden in Chandigarh, India. (AP)

Chand, who had no formal education and worked as a road inspector in the new city, secretly cleared large areas of forest, transforming the landscape with his sculptures.

“I started building this garden as a hobby” in the 1950s, he said in a rare interview with AFP in December.

“I had many ideas, I was thinking all the time... I saw beauty and art in what people said was junk.”

His project was finally discovered in 1976, when it was formally inaugurated, and it now draws thousands of visitors a day.

“He passed away a little after midnight. He had been in hospital for the past few days due to ill health,” said Saini.

Visitors take a tour of the Rock Garden created by Indian artist Nek Chand, in Chandigarh, India. (AP)

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the tributes, saying Chand would “always be remembered for his artistic genius”.

“Nek Chand-ji will always be remembered for his fabulous creation that is cherished by many. May his soul rest in peace,” Modi said in a tweet.

The Chandigarh administration has declared a holiday in its offices on Friday as a mark of respect to the world-acclaimed architectural genius.

His body has been kept in the Rock Garden for the people to pay tribute, the family members said.

Nek Chand developed the art of creating figures from waste material discarded by people and secretly set up his laboratory in a forested area in north Chandigarh.

It was only in the mid-70s that Nek Chand’s art was recognised and Chandigarh’s ‘Rock Garden’ came into being. The Rock Garden was officially inaugurated in October 1976.

The Rock Garden, located in Chandigarh’s Sector 1 on a sprawling 35-acre campus, can be best described as a “kingdom” which depicts the life and ecology of India, comprising features of both rural and urban settings.

Visitors walk through the Rock Garden, built by self-taught Indian artist Nek Chand (AFP)

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh expressed shock and grief over Nek Chand’s death.

In separate condolence messages, they said Nek Chand would be long remembered for his creative contributions.

Expressing grief, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said he would be ever remembered for his masterpiece creation, which was an example of his creativity, aesthetics and hard work.

Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and Information and Public Relations Minister Bikram Singh Majithia also mourned his death.

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said the Rock Garden was a masterpiece and was visited by thousands of people.

Assistant media advisor to Punjab government Vineet Joshi said in recognising the contribution of Nek Chand, who was awarded the Grand Medal of Vermeil from Paris in 1980, in giving Chandigarh its identity, the Chandigarh International Airport should be named after him.

“Many persons would have found him crazy when he collected waste materials from far and wide and worked on his dream project to build a unique garden,” said A.J. Philip, a former senior associate editor of Chandigarh-based English daily The Tribune.

“Once, while going for a walk at Istanbul in Turkey, I suddenly came across a small Rock Garden. There, too, waste materials were used to create something out of nothing.

“I wanted to tell Nek Chand how happy I felt when I saw the imitation of the Rock Garden in faraway Istanbul. Alas, that was not to be, as we could not meet afterwards,” Philip wrote on his Facebook page.