Usha Rani Hooja
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Usha Rani Hooja (18 May 1923 – 22 May 2013)[1] was a noted sculptor from the Rajasthan state of India. She studied sculpture at the Regent Street Polytechnic in London. She has published a collection of her poems "Song & Sculpture". Her work was the subject of numerous exhibitions.
Usha Rani's career as a sculptor was sparked by a chance encounter soon after her graduation with an MA in philosophy from St. Stephen's. She saw a sculpture class at the Delhi Polytechnic and was immediately seduced. An illness soon afterwards resulted in a long period of rest but this enforced hibernation allowed her to submerge herself in books on sculpture. After the theoretical absorption came the practical – years spent at the Regent Street Polytechnic in London between 1949 and 1954. She frequented Jacob Epstein's Saturday open house and was introduced to the Paris studio of Brancusi.