AN EXPLORATORY STUDY: CONCH SHELL CARVING IN BISHNUPUR, INDIA

The term "conch" has been often used throughout history to designate a variety of medium to large sea snails, particularly their shells. Bishnupur, a city and municipality in the Bankura district of West Bengal, India, has a rich heritage that includes the skill of carving these conches. Conch shell carving is renowned for its incredibly lovely and elaborate patterns contributing to some elegant visual art forms. In the Hindu faith, they play a crucial role and are seen as lucky in the mythology of the Hindus. Common products created from conches include ornaments, trumpets, beautiful home goods, sculptures, and more. This craft of carving conch shells is practised by traditional artists, many of them are members of the caste known as "Sankha Banik." Nowadays, the centre of these activities by these artists is a location named "Sankhari Bazaar" in the city of Bishnupur. Their expertise and art are passed down from years to generations, ensuring that this indigenous craft form never goes extinct. This paper makes an effort to comprehend the history of this craft form, the effects of geography and other state sovereignty conditions on it, the multiple techniques used to create objects from conch shells, its distinctiveness as a centuries-old art form, and finally, to investigate the current issues affecting this industry. The present scenario and user perspective has been tallied through a stakeholder survey conducted in Bishnupur, West Bengal, India. As a conclusion, this paper also seeks to identify potential paths and future directions for Bishnupur's conch shell sector to emerge as a prospective visual communicator.