​JERAM BHANA - Artist

 

 

A name synonymous with Indian sculpture in South Africa, Jeram Bhana is an inspirational icon who needs no introduction.

 

Born in Pretoria in 1940, Bhana is an artist and musician who, from an early age, had a keen interest in Indian history, music and art. This was during some of the worst times of South African history and as it was not possible for him to study formally in this field, he left for India, where he stayed with family over the next few years. It was during this period that he was able to study under some of India's finest teachers in Mumbai at the Sir J. J. Institute of Applied Arts. Bhana focussed on his chosen art form - pottery – which later made way for more formal sculpting.

 

He returned to South Africa in the late 1950s where he became a master of traditional Hindu sculpture. He executes these figures according to the strict rules laid down in the mythological stories that portray these images in the Hindu holy scriptures.

 

Today, Bhana creates masterpieces out of potters clay from which a mould is made and is subsequently cast in a marble and resin mixture. He is equally competent at both traditional and more contemporary art forms. His sculptures and domes adorn nearly every Hindu temple and home in South Africa and have reached places as far as Mauritius, America and Australia.

 

Bhana continues to live and work at his studio in Pretoria, assisted by a team of proficient artists who have been trained under him.