For most, retirement is a time for relaxation, however for Saji Ennakkad, a retired Kerala State Electricity Board senior superintendent, it’s a time for creation—he’s spending his life financial savings on constructing a memorial for Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, the French inventor and pioneer of pictures, at Vathikulam, close to Mavelikara.
The work on the Joseph Nicéphore Niépce Memorial started on 5.5 cents of land in June this 12 months. Former Chief Secretary Ok. Jayakumar laid the muse stone and the venture is anticipated to be accomplished by early 2026.
Joseph Nicéphore Niepce.
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The venture, with an estimated price of ₹45-50 lakh, being applied beneath the aegis of the Joseph Nicéphore Niépce Foundation, will recreate the portion of Niépce’s (1765–1833) home at Saint-Loup-de-Varennes in France. The memorial will characteristic the enduring window by which Niépce captured ‘View from the Window at Le Gras (Point de vue du Gras),‘ the world’s earliest surviving {photograph}.
View from the Window at Le Gras (Point de vue du Gras).
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“It was on this estate that Niépce carried out his groundbreaking experiments in heliography, the earliest photographic process. Around 1826–1827, Niépce captured the photograph using a camera obscura. The image was made on a pewter plate coated with bitumen of Judea, hardened by sunlight, and later washed with lavender oil to reveal the picture. In later years, photography immortalised memories, but the world had almost forgotten the man who made it possible. The monument ensures that Niépce will forever be remembered,” stated Mr. Saji, who’s a painter and photojournalist.
The Niépce Heliograph is completely exhibited on the Harry Ransom Centre, University of Texas, within the United States. According to the Joseph Nicéphore Niépce Foundation, the Mavelikara memorial will honour “Niépce as the true father of photography, correct historical misconceptions, and educate the global community and inspire the younger generation with authentic history.”
Former Chief Secretary Ok. Jayakumar laying the muse stone for the Joseph Nicéphore Niépce Memorial at Vathikulam, close to Mavelikara, in June 2025.
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A 34-kilogram bronze statue of Niépce will stand beside the memorial, which is deliberate as a contemporary cultural complicated that includes a pictures museum, artwork gallery, workshop areas for pictures and portray lovers, and an open-air stage for cultural occasions.
Mr. Saji can be the writer of a guide in regards to the historical past of pictures, titled Nischalam Nishabdham.