GUWAHATI: The Benu Misra Memorial NRL Award 2024 has been presented to senior artist Aminul Haque and a young artist from Karbi Anglong, Romen Engti.
The event, organized by the Gauhati Artists’ Guild in association with Benu Mishra Memorial Trust and Numligarh Refinery Limited, was held at Vivekananda Kendra in Guwahati on Sunday.
The event was graced by Assam Education Minister Ranoj Pegu as chief guest and Kajol Sakia, CGM & HR of Numligarh Refinery Limited, as the guest of honour.
The award carries a memento, a citation, and a cash reward of Rs 1,50,000 for senior artists and Rs 1,00,000 for junior artists.
The award has been instituted by Gauhati Artists’ Guild in the name of one of the most accomplished visual artists of the State Late Benu Misra.
The award seeks to recognize and honour eminent visual artists of the state in two categories–veteran category for lifetime achievement and promising upcoming artist.
Born in Barpeta to a respected family on November 27, 1939, eminent artist and sculptor Benu Misra is credited with being one of the pioneers in shaping modern visual art in the state through his artistic vision and acumen.
His forays into the world of art found expression in diverse forms of painting, sculpture, sketching, graphic design, and cartoons.
Misra, an alumnus of Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, was instrumental in founding the Gauhati Artists Guild in 1976. He remained its founder president during 1876-88.
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A graduate with distinction in Fine Arts and Crafts from Visva Bharati University, he honed his skills under the tutelage of artistic luminaries like Ramkinkar Baij, Benode Behari Mukherjee and other stalwarts of Indian art.
The artist was a recipient of the Pranab Baruah Award in 2003, Bishnu Rabha Award in 2006, and Jivan Silpi Award in 2016.
