lawns; the sensuality of the sculpture drew protests from traditionalists. Two years later, he was invited by the Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) for two sculptures in the premises of their new office in Kadavanthra and he created Environmental Pieces and Mukkola Perumal, both concrete sculptures. He also created a sculpture, Fertility at Ambalamedu premises of the Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore. In 1990, he completed the Jalakanyaka (Mermaid), a sculpture at Shankumugham Beach, in Thiruvananthapuram; The beach also has another of his sculptures titled, Snake. The bronze bust of K. P. P. Nambiar, the Padma Bhushan winning technocrat, and the bust of K. C. Mammen Mappillai are two conventional sculptures created by Kunhiraman. Amma in Payyambalam, Akshara Shilpam in Kottayam, Conch, Seats, Nandi and Embrace at Veli Tourist Village, are some of his other works. Melathara and Kalithara, dedicated to public with the accompaniment from a violin concert by L. Athira Krishna in Kollam in 2008. and the Aksharashilpam, at the premises of the public library in Kottayam feature among his more recent works. He has also published on poetry anthology, titled, Kānāyi Kuñhirāmant̲e Kavitakaḷ. Awards and honours Kunhiraman, who has designed many of the statuettes for various awards in Kerala, was selected by Kerala Lalithakala Akademi for their annual award, Raja Ravi Varma Award, in 2005, making him the first sculptor to receive the honour. He received the Thikkurissy Award in 2006 and Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath awarded him the inaugural MS Nanjunda Rao National Award for Art in 2018. Lalit Kala Akademi, the national academy of India for fine arts, published a book on Kunhiraman's works in 2008. In 2011, he received the T. K. Ramakrishnan Award instituted by Abu Dhabi Sakthi Theatres for his overall contribution. He was conferred the Kerala Sree award instituted by Government of Kerala in 2022. Selected works Books on Kanayai Kunhiraman Gallery References External links Malayali people Living people Alumni of the University of London 1937 births Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai alumni Indian male sculptors People from Kasaragod district Artists from Kerala 20th-century Indian sculptors 21st-century Indian sculptors Indian contemporary sculptors 20th-century Indian male artists 21st-century Indian male artists Kerala Sree Award Winners Recipients of the Abu Dhabi Sakthi Award