As the planet we live on has completed another milestone in the universe with it's own completion of yet another rotation around the Sun, we mark it on our timeline as an end-of-a-year, tag it with our bundled-experiences, and enter a brand new year. We enter new year with greater hope than the previous. Before this year slips fully into memories, I look back into it with my heartfelt artful (re)view of my (he)art.
2020 - THE YEAR OF MANY FACES
The year of Pandemic - 2020 was an unprecedented year in many ways. It was also an unforgettable and the most challenging year for everyone. The Pandemic caused by invisible has been an experience carried forward into next year, the one that humans have never experienced before. Many lives have been tragically taken, many more lives have been fearfully shaken, and all lives have been badly impacted in some way or other.
The face of PANDEMIC
The year 2020 had clearly revealed "the world today" and the unhealthy life-style of all of us. In this ever super-advanced living age of medicine, science and technology, even after a full-year of dealing with it, the world still has been struggling to fight with it, the invisible that cannot even survive at all by itself for even several hours. It took millions of lives just by taking help from us to let it spread. In many ways, this year has taught us how-to-live and how-not-to-live.
The face of HUMANITY
Human beings suddenly started to regain their long-lost "being", by helping other humans around them who have been unlucky and got hit badly by this Pandemic. "How long that 'being' stays with humans?" is a question that future has to answer.
The face of MASK
Mask - the ever "simplest invention" by humans became the "greatest invention" ever, this year. It got onto every single human face quickly as a protective measure against the invisible and remained on the face for the longest period (may be never ending, only future decides this new avatar of humans) that one could ever imagine. For one's own and each others' safety, wearing a mask in public even became a mandate in many places across the globe. The technology giants who invented many wearables never even thought of a wearable-mask-gadget. Mask is going to remain the dominant wearable in human history.
The face of REALITY
A year that started like any other but dramatically took a turn into a "deadly year". Many families lost their near and dear to this invisible. The reality of this Pandemic is nothing but a "tragedy".
MY WRITINGS
In addition to Art, my soul enjoys reading and writing. I read few books and continued reading something or other almost everyday. Writing has even become more of a serious hobby in 2020. I accepted a 10-days-art-challenge by an Artist who herself did not do it for 10 days. When I accepted, I thought of just posting my old college days paintings. But I started writing on day-1 about the very first painting I posted. I had to take myself back into those years to recollect everything around that painting. I continued that each day for 10 days. At the end I felt happy I did it the way I thought of doing it without giving it up. I enjoyed describing my experiences with each one of my paintings that I chose to post each day of those 10 days. Some people who followed me on that series, encouraged me to keep going on the path that I chose. At the end I was so happy I did it. It made me live back again in 1980s and 1990s.
Who said you only live once? You can live as many times as you want to, and live as longer as you want to, if you leave your own mark on this planet in this digital age.
I also recollected some of my childhood and early after-college memories into my writings. Of course, I continued to write about current Software Technology on my technology blog.
As I always say, an artist's painting is best explained by the Artist only. No matter how many centuries people do research on an Artist's painting, they will not find even a tiny-percent of the Artist's heart in his/her Art.
MY ART - Many Face(s) in it
Art has become an inseparable part of my week-end life. I just can't live without doing or thinking of doing it on any given week-end. The joy of starting and working on a painting makes me feel my life fully. Soon after I finish a painting, the life within me starts getting empty for fulfilling it. Fulfilling a desire is what gives a true meaning to life!
The face of Portraits
I would call year 2020, the year of Portraits. Portraits took dominant part in my art categories this year. I mostly did portraits of people who touched my heart and my life.
The face of a Resolution
I also did 3 special portraits of unknown people when random people on Instagram and WhatsApp approached me for a favor. Two of those three were double portraits, first of that kind. One of those two, in fact, was the one that I spent most of my time on a portrait ever. It took almost 3 full weekends of my time. I was also mentally restless while I was doing this, I had to get this right. If I made any major mistake, I had to start it over. After all my efforts, time, being on top of it, keeping other planned works aside, at the end, I did not even get a single word of "thank you" in return. When I got a request-for-favor-message on WhatsApp for that particular portrait, it was a bit pleasingly descriptive request. After finishing it, I was so excited to send a message along with the image. But the response I got was a simple two-click Namaskar-icon on WhatsApp. The response was very discouraging and made me regret.
I learned the fact: Anything that comes for free has no value and is cheap in life. Not many people have any respects for others' time and efforts!
I will not be taking favor-requests any more. Wasting my time for people who do not value it is in fact, "me insulting my own time & life". I have done this enough. This is not the first of such regrets, but should the last of such!
The face of Happiness
There are still people who respect and value Art. I was very happy when Mrs.Mrinalini Shastry from Six Yards Plus, Hyderabad approached me through Instagram to buy one of my Paintings that she fell in love with and bought 3 of my Paintings. She was very professional and left her own impressive and respectful mark in my Art. I donated all the money I received in return for those 3 paintings, to an "underprivileged kids home" in Hyderabad, India. This was a multi-happy-moment for my Art this year.
Despite 2020 being very challenging with deadly pandemic measures, I was still able to create many satisfying portraits that were near to my heart, and take several very-fine and fully-lived-in moments into my memories!
Overall, for me, 2020 has been the year of Affection, Love, and Humanity!
Heartfelt Good-Bye to 2020 !
Heartful Welcome to 2021 !!
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