CHANDOR: As one enters Chandor, one is awestruck by the sight of the magnificent Igreja de Nossa Senhora de Belém, standing tall in the Market area of the village. On walking for a few minutes along the left side of the church, towards the railway crossing, in Guirdolim, Anthoi, an elegant, yellow Goan house, now converted into a party venue called Grandeza, stands out. In the backyard of this grand mansion, the owner of the space has a small workshop where he creates masterpieces of contemporary art inspired by various objects, ways of living, and cultural heritage around him. This man, young at heart with a smiling face and a mind filled with creative ideas is Celio Mascarenhas.
Celio, 61, was born to Antonieta Dias e Mascarenhas and José Mascarenhas at his maternal house in Utorda. He completed a degree in Commerce in 1985-86 from Damodar College of Commerce and Economics. His hobbies include painting on canvas using acrylic paints, making sculptures, reading, and listening to music. “When I was in college, I would make a lot of acrylic paintings in addition to doing portraits using ballpoint pens for which I had been awarded first place in a competition held in 1983-84,” he said. He began creating sculptures after completing his graduation around the year 1990 when he would make only small sculptures which were around one foot tall. He moved on to making bigger ones only about 15 years ago. “I get a sense of self-satisfaction looking at all of my works, and I want to fill up my home space with a lot more works,” says Celio, who is a big fan of world-renowned Goan cartoonist Mario Miranda.
Celio mainly creates his art based on the theme of human forms and musical instruments using a contemporary approach. He uses materials like wood, coconut tree trunk, and rock to make his sculptures. “I now avoid working with rock due to the dust it creates,” says Celio. “Most of the material I use for my artworks has been upcycled from old waste wood or has been offered to me by humble, generous souls,” he adds. Every day, Celio invests a minimum of 4-5 hours of dedication and hard work in creating jaw-dropping pieces of art. He says that his family has always been the main source of moral support to him and has always highly appreciated his work and effort. “The artworks I create demand a lot of time, and it gets difficult when I have to manage our party venue side by side, which sometimes hinders my work,” mentions Celio. “I purchased the tools I use online, while many have been gifted to me by my close friends,” he added.
“After my graduation, I joined my dad’s wine-making business. After his death, I carried on for ten years until I realised that it was not my cup of tea and hence decided to do something else. That is how I began my new venture of setting up my very own party venue and decided on following my passion for making sculpture at the same time. With a lot of enthusiasm, Celio adds that among others, one of his ‘to do’ projects in the future is an artwork representing the traditional Goan mode of transport known as the Carrera. “I wish to display all of my works in an exhibition at my very own art gallery called Achie’s Art Gallery someday soon,” he says.