Mysore/Mysuru: Noted sea-shell artist Radha Mallappa has been selected for Vachana icon M. Veerappa Endowment Award for the year 2020. The award carries a cash prize of Rs. 68,000 and a citation.

A native of Hullahalli in Nanjangud taluk of Mysuru district, Radha Mallappa is a multi-faceted artist, having excelled in painting and dance.

She is well-versed in creating artworks out of waste and trash materials. Her creation of 22 ft. tall Ganapathi idol made out of seashells weighing 420-kg has entered the Guinness Book of Records in 2016 as the ‘Largest Sea Shell Sculpture.’

Radha Mallappa displayed her artworks made in a span of 40 years at ‘Kalashree Bhandar,’ her home-cum-museum in Hanumanthanagar, Bannimantap, Mysuru.

Radha has bagged many local, national and International awards including Aryabhata International Award, Bharata Jyothi National Award, Kittur Rani Chennamma State Award, Shilpacharya State Award, Karnataka Muktaka Sahitya Academy Award and Shilpa Sevaratna Award, among others.

She was also conferred a Hon. Doctorate by National Virtual University in 2019.

The M. Veerappa Endowment Award is instituted by M. Prafullachandra  and Satish Prafullachandra, the son and grandson respectively of renowned painter and Founder of Mysore Toys Company of the city M. Veerappa, at JSS Mahavidyapeetha.

The M. Veerappa Endowment Award is given every year to distinguished artists  since 2015.