paintings), works of the Kalighat and Bengal School masters. Having said that, I enjoy depicting my Goddesses in different styles to suit regional contexts. For instance, the Hindu Goddess Lakshmi has an owl as her ‘vahana’ (vehicle) only in the Bengali context. Therefore, the rendition of Bengali ‘Lokkhi’ would probably have a rural Bengal backdrop and the Goddess would be adorned keeping Bengali aesthetics in mind. In the North Indian context, she would probably be seen as ‘Gajalakshmi’, in a lotus pond flanked by elephants and sans the owl. In fact, some of my blog readers from the South pointed out that they were surprised to see the owl and Lakshmi association, as the bird is considered a bad omen in some southern cultures. You currently live in Geneva and produce Indian art that is bursting with colours – how does this contrast work for your art? It balances out the dullness of Europe completely! Well, living in Europe has certainly helped me appreciate the Indian life more, observe more closely how art and colour are interwoven into everyday living in any region or culture of the country with the rangolis, alponas, kolams, even street art; how the villages are steeped in the folk arts and crafts, how the countless festivals make your senses come alive!
12
culturama | october 2011
The Hindu Goddess of Lakshmi has an owl as her ‘Vahana’ (vehicle) only in the Bengali context
Your art has also gained momentum as interior decorators and home décor aficionados’ favourite here. How did this happen? My blog www.deezden.blogspot.com had the biggest role to play in getting me a platform and a connecting point with other artists/bloggers, art, décor and design aficionados. I got a huge amount of support from the prominent bloggers in the Indian art and design world today as well as journalists and writers who featured me in print. Can you take us through your creative process – from the idea to the final finished piece, how do you work? It depends. Sometimes a painting or a sketch is spontaneous. At other
times, it is conceived over time, through research and reference work and several studies in sketch. In fact, I make a mind map before starting with any of my larger canvases and then, once you start painting, the process takes over so that the outcome is not completely predictable. I work with acrylics on canvas. For commissions, I like to exchange notes with my collector to establish some key elements that would guide the work. Can anyone commission art for professional and personal purposes with you? Of course. That is what I do! In fact, a chunk of my work is commission based.