Noted artist, sculptor Sher Singh Kukkal dead

Noted artist and sculptor Sher Singh Kukkal died on Saturday after a brief illness, family sources said.

He was 86.

Kukkal, former art teacher at the Sainik School Satara and a recipient of many awards, died in Delhi, the sources said.

A versatile artist with a vast experience in fine arts, Kukkal hailed from Buffa district now in Pakistan. He worked as a freelance artist, doing drawing, painting, sculpture, printing and photography. He painted with graphite pencils, pen and ink.

He won various national and international awards for photography and painting, including the Gold Medal in Painting from Queens College, Lucknow and the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation Award.

He was awarded Senior Fellowship in Visual Art Photography by Union Ministry Of Culture during 2008-09.

Anil Choudhari, an alumnus of Sainik School Satara, said Kukkal was the best art teacher the school ever had.

"Thanks to Kukkal Sir, I was involved in most of his initiatives, including painting. Thanks to him I am a member of the Art Society of India now," he said.