Odisha artist makes Konark temple sand sculpture in London

Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik promoted Odisha tourism abroad by creating a sand sculpture of a miniature of Konark sun temple at the World Travel Market in London, the artist said Friday.

Pattnaik, who is a native of Odisha's beach town of Puri, about 56 kms from state capital Bhubaneswar, said he created a sand sculpture of 13th century Konark sun temple by using one bag of sand.

"The miniature of Kornark was the main attraction for tourists. The Konark temple, popularly known as Black Pagoda is the only UNESCO world heritage site in Odisha," Pattnaik told IANS on the phone from London.

"I am honoured to be a part of Odisha tourism and I am trying to attract people to Odisha through my sand art," he added.

Pattnaik was conferred with the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award, this year.

The World Travel Market event was held Nov 3-6 and is a leading annual global event for the travel industry.