The rock garden or Rock Garden of Chandigarh is a Sculpture garden in Chandigarh, India, also known as Nek Chand's Rock Garden after its founder Nek Chand, a government official who started the garden secretly in his spare time in 1957. Today it is spread over an area of forty-acres (160,000 m²), it is completely built of industrial and home waste and thrown-away items.
The creator of an astounding world which he conjured out of waste, discarded material and household items, Nek Chand rose from humble beginnings as a Department of Roads official to become a self-taught craftsman whose genius drove the blossoming of the iconic Rock Garden here.
Born in 1924 in Shakargarh in present-day Pakistan, Nek Chand and his family settled in Punjab after the Partition as his family moved to Chandigarh in 1947.
The city at the time was being redesigned as a modern utopia by the Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. It was to be the first planned city in India and Nek Chand found work with the Chandigarh administration in 1951 as a roads inspector in the Public Works Department.
Soon, Nek Chand went to work on a small garden tucked away in a little forest patch near Sukhna lake which his efforts and dedication would turn into a magic kingdom.
In his spare time, he began collecting materials from demolition sites around the city and recycled these to fit into his own vision. He toiled away secretly in the dead of the night for close to two decades to create the marvel that is the Rock Garden. The artist in Nek Chand discovered in the building and industrial waste, novel resources for his creativity.
On holidays, he would ignore his domestic duties and instead of spending time with family, would bicycle down to river beds or up into the mountains and jungles in search for his 'treasure'.
After 20 years of sheer hard work, the light of dawn finally shone on him when some bureaucrats woke up to his awe-inspiring creation. It was after the laying of the Lake Road (name of the stretch on which the Rock Garden is located) and during the process to wrap up the works that the administration discovered this so called "Store Garden".
But when it was first discovered, in 1975, the authorities threatened to demolish it as they claimed it had violated the strict planning laws which protected Le Corbusier's 'City Beautiful', where everything had to be a part of the master plan.
According to the Chand Foundation, many politicians, too, had demanded that the Rock Garden be dismantled as they termed it an illegal development.
However, others -- who followed public opinion and their own tolerant enlightenment -- ensured that Nek Chand's creation became a well-funded public park.
Nek Chand was relieved of his duties as government roads inspector and given a salary to continue with the expansion of the Rock Garden with the designation, 'Creator-Director'.
In addition, city authorities funded a force of labourers to help install all his sculptures in the mosaic courtyards.
To build the Rock Garden, Nek Chand used discarded objects like broken crockery, electrical fittings, glass bangles and bicycle frames.
He had started on his dream project by clearing a little patch of jungle to make himself a small garden. He set stones around the little clearing and, before long, had sculpted a few figures from discarded material which he had collected.
Gradually Nek Chand's creation grew and covered several acres dotted with hundreds of sculptures set in a series of interlinking courtyards. MN Sharma, the first Chief Architect of Chandigarh, was amazed at this creation. He liked the ambience so much that instead of ordering its demolition, which he could; he started visiting the place regularly. After 20 years of sheer hard work, the light of dawn finally shone on him when some bureaucrats woke up to his awe-inspiring creation.
It was after the laying of the Lake Road (name of the stretch on which the Rock Garden is located) and during the process to wrap up the works that the administration discovered this so called "Store Garden". But when it was first discovered, in 1975, the authorities threatened to demolish it as they claimed it had violated the strict planning laws which protected Le Corbusier's 'City Beautiful', where everything had to be a part of the master plan.
According to the Chand Foundation, many politicians, too, had demanded that the Rock Garden be dismantled as they termed it an illegal development.
However, others -- who followed public opinion and their own tolerant enlightenment -- ensured that Nek Chand's creation became a well-funded public park.
Nek Chand was relieved of his duties as government roads inspector and given a salary to continue with the expansion of the Rock Garden with the designation, 'Creator-Director'.
In addition, city authorities funded a force of labourers to help install all his sculptures in the mosaic courtyards.
To build the Rock Garden, Nek Chand used discarded objects like broken crockery, electrical fittings, glass bangles and bicycle frames. He had started on his dream project by clearing a little patch of jungle to make himself a small garden. He set stones around the little clearing and, before long, had sculpted a few figures from discarded material which he had collected.
Gradually Nek Chand's creation grew and covered several acres dotted with hundreds of sculptures set in a series of interlinking courtyards. MN Sharma, the first Chief Architect of Chandigarh, was amazed at this creation. He liked the ambience so much that instead of ordering its demolition, which he could; he started visiting the place regularly.
Rose of White.
Divine by essence.
Gates of Grace.
Light and Shadow.
Fountains of Truth.
Four square deep Within.
Gardens of Light.
Four square with abundance of Life.
Doorways of Gold.
Seeking the Light.
Guided by Grace.
Eternity in sight.
Divine Mind at rest.
maintaining the All.
Allah-Allah-Allah.
Truth filling the Soul.
Baraka felt deep Within.
heart felt states of Grace.
Reciprocal feeding the Light.
Gardens Divine.
To remember- To Remember Garden '' Divine.''
Nek Chand, creator of Chandigarh’s Rock Garden, dies at 90.
Creator of world famous Rock Garden Nek Chand died here on Friday at a hospital where he had been admitted following complaint of chest pain. He was 90. The Padma Shri Awardee, whose 90th birthday was celebrated by the Chandigarh Administration on 15 December, died at the PGIMER shortly on Friday, where he had been admitted following complaint of chest pain, his family said.
He was brought to PGIMER on Friday, the hospital officials said.
Nek Chand, who was born in a village now in Pakistan, worked as a road inspector of the Public Works Department. His body will be kept in the Rock garden on Friday to enable people to pay their last respects, his family said, adding, the cremation is expected to take place on Saturday.
He built the city’s iconic Rock Garden from waste and other unused household materials. Spread over an area of forty-acres, the garden was inaugurated in 1976
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