Artist Rajkumar Shakya

Artist Rajkumar Shakya was one of the prominent sculptors who maintained and magnified the traditional Newar practice of repousse metalwork. He had built various monumental structures such as three huge prayer wheels (mane) at Swayambhunath; two similar prayer wheels at Bouddha; Torans at Ganesh Mandir, Chetrapati; Gajur at Ganesh temple, Old Thimi; the golden naag around the Shiva Linga at Pashupati temple, Pashupati; golden Mandala at Guheshwori, 29 ft Gajur at Pokhara’s Shanti Stupa; Tibetan-styled Chaitya at Kapan Gumba; and a 10-ft-tall statue of Padmasamva at Tokha. His works can also be found in Bhutan, Japan, South Korea, France, Italy, and America. At the World Expo held in Germany in 2000 and World Expo in China in 2010, all the metal works on display at the Nepal pavilion were designed by Rajkumar. A 155-ft-tall statue of Guru Padmasambhava in Bhutan is his largest artwork conceptualized, designed, and built by him with the teamwork of 60 artists and workers from Nepal, India, and Bhutan. 50 feet Siddhartha Buddha in Lumbini is his latest work. 72 feet Bhairav is the work in progress in Champi, Lalitpur.