Sunday, December 31, 2017

Looking Back - 2017...

Good Bye 2017
Good Bye - 2017
As the time moves on, our journey with it leaves experiences. The last day of an year is the day we tag our year-long experiences and add them to our memories. My Artful journey with year 2017 is another heartfelt journey in my life.

I never thought I would ever get a chance to meet one of the greatest Telugu Artists of all time Sri Chandra Garu. It's been such a wonderful memory in my life meeting him and spending few hours of my time along with another two great Telugu Artists of this time Anwar Garu and Moshe Dayan Garu at Hyderabad, India when I went on vacation in January 2017.

All my time I had spent this year with Art on several quiet weekend-mornings, the encouraging responses I got from my friends when I shared my Art on my Art Blog, Facebook and Instagram, the Artful places I visited, the people I met who talked about Art with me, and the Artists I met at local Art shows... all these have made an impact and left memorable impressions in my heart.

Life is a journey with time. As we walk on the time-path, we meet many people along the way. Some inspire us, some get inspired from us, some travel with us only for a short period of time, and some continue to travel with us year-after-year for a long time. Each person we meet along this path creates an unique impression. While we travel on this time-path, when we get certain things done for which we otherwise don't find time to do, due to higher day-to-day-life priorities, we can consider ourselves fully lived in that time.

I have had many years passed in my life with no Art Tag put on any. I am happy, the year 2017 is not one such. Me and my-Art is my-Heart. When my heart walks back on this time-path, it meets again in memories, all those who made an Artful impact on my life along with my Art. As I tag my experiences on this last day of the year and add them to memories, I mark 2017 as one of my successful years that I lived up to my own expectations.

" I'm not in this world to live up to your expectations and 
you're are not in this world to live up to mine. "  - Bruce Lee

Good Bye to 2017 and Welcome to 2018 !!
Happy Painting !!!

Sunday, December 24, 2017

Practice...

Practice - Watercolors on Paper
When you don't know what to do, just practice and it will teach something new to you...

"Practice is the best master." - Latin Proverb

Details
Mediums: Ink Pen and Watercolors on Paper
Tools: Sakura Pigma Micron Pen 02 & 03, Watercolors from my Palette
Inspiration: Self Motivation and Passion for Arts, సాధన...
Size: 8 1/2" x 11" (21.5 cm x 28 cm)
Surface: Acid free Paper

Friday, December 15, 2017

Happy Birthday Bhuvan...

Portrait of my son - Bhuvan
Watercolors on Paper
This portrait of Bhuvan took my confidence level with Portraits to new heights. Never felt this happy in recent years with any of my Art works.

Born on the same day as my favorite Telugu Artist Sri. Bapu, he always makes me feel happy. He inherited my Art skill that I had inherited from my Dad. Hope he develops a passion for this skill and continues the legacy in the 3rd generation of our family!

"Someday when the pages of my life end, I know that you will be one of it's most beautiful chapters." - Unknown

Happy Birthday Bhuvan!
Love you!!

Details
Title: Portrait of my son, Bhuvan...
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 9" x 12" (22.9 cm x 30.5 cm)
Surface: Strathmore 400 Series, 140lb Watercolor Paper, Cold Press

Sunday, December 10, 2017

Let your works be your memories...

Krishna with Flute
Watercolors on Paper
Days just come and go. What we do each day which is close to our heart is the one that becomes a memory. A diary is nothing but a record of memories. For an Artist, his memories are his Art.

"Painting is just another way of keeping a diary." - Pablo Picasso

Happy Painting!

Details
Title: Krishna with Flute...
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 9" x 12" (22.9 cm x 30.5 cm)
Surface: Strathmore 400 Series, 140lb Watercolor Paper, Cold Press

Sunday, December 3, 2017

A Dream come true...

Nātyānjali - My Tribute to Indian Classical Dance
Oil on Canvas, 
22" x 28" (56 cm x 71 cm)
Oil Painting had been the longest dream of my life. It had begun in my high school with the good collection of Art books and magazines that we had access to in our School Library. Also, there were quite a few wonderful Oil Paintings seen on the walls of classrooms and dormitories in the school campus done by our then Art Teacher Sri. M. Venkateswar Rao. Once an year, we would get bookshop on the truck into our school campus and we would get class wide turns to step inside, explore and buy books of our interest. Much of the books were of Soviet Union, Moscow publications/prints with top-notch paper and some were with full of amazing Oil Paintings.

My dream of Oil Painting continued through my Engineering college-years in Vijayawada, India, wherein the college library had a good collection of foreign Art Books and Magazines exclusively on Oil Painting. I was probably one of very few Engineering Students to flip all pages of every single Art book found in that library. I even bought a Soviet publication book of Russian Artists Oil Paintings, the one and only one book I could find in a book shop which was as expensive as our Singapore edition of Computer Programming books priced in Dollars but sold in converted Indian currency. My search for Oil Painting books & magazines even went on and on along the foot-paths(side-walks) in front of Alankar Theatre in Vijayawada on Sunday evening book sales. I could hardly find any though. My search for Oil Painting Books continued in Sunday book market on the side walks in Koti, Hyderabad after I graduated and started working. There I found several small 20 page Art Magazines on Oil Painting and bought several of those.

Salarjung Museum, Hyderabad probably was the very first place where I had seen any framed original Oil Paintings the very first time in my life. I visited this museum few times when I was working in Hyderabad exclusively for Painting & Sculpture Galleries.

I still remember the day I went straight from the Railway station to and spent few hours of my time at Raja Ravi Varma Art Gallery in Mysore, India when I reached Mysore about 8 hours before the scheduled pickup time for my very first job interview for Air Force, India. That is still one of my sweetest memories to recover on any given day.

My first overseas visit on my professional job to London, UK, left me with few full-weekends of unforgettable memories filled with just me staring in front of wonderful original Oil Paintings by renowned Artists fount at Tate Gallery, National Gallery and British Museum in London. The countless hours that I spent at the The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago downtown are still fresh in my heart where I used to go every Tuesday evening after office-hours to spend my time sketching & studying by sitting on the floor in front of selected paintings and sculptures. My quest for Oil Painting continued in Chicago and pushed me into an Oil Painting course at a Community College which helped me more on learning how to study Paintings of Masters rather than Oil Painting itself. I attempted few oil paintings during this course but none of them I claim that I finished.

My dream of Oil Painting continued to haunt me from time-to-time and finally in 2015 I made it come true with this very first painting that I claim as my very first-ever finished Oil Painting forever. As my dream took such a long time to come true, framing it took quite sometime and finally I think I found a perfect frame for it. It now appears in our family traditional Dining room and makes me feel proud every single day.

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." - Walt Disney

Put your Heart into work and get it done which should make you feel proud of yourself when you look back!
Happy Painting!!

Details
Mediums: Oil on Canvas
Title: Nātyānjali - My Tribute to Indian Classical Dance
Category: Portraits
Inspiration: My dream wish-list and random pictures
Size: 22" x 28" (56 cm x 71 cm)

Toolkit
Surface: Artist's Loft Gallery Wrapped Traditional Canvas
Paints: Rembrandt Artist's quality Oil Paints
Brushes: No 1, 5 and 8 filbert, No. 1 rounded
Other Media: Winsor & Newton Liquin Original

Friday, November 24, 2017

Run with Passion...

Runner - Ink and Watercolors on Paper
In everyday's life we run with time and most of the times we run out of time. When we follow our passion and run with it, we'll never run out of time.

Thanksgiving is that time of the year we get few days off from our daily routine running life. It is also that time of the year we become little lazy and feel like doing nothing but eating. ;) But our inner passion never stops from running. If we can find sometime, get up, and run with our passion, our holidays get truly fulfilled.

"Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there." - Will Rogers

Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Holidays!!
Happy Painting!!!

Details
Mediums: Ink Pen and Watercolors on Paper
Tools: Sakura Pigma Micron Pen 005 & 03, Watercolors from my Palette
Inspiration: Self Motivation and Passion for Arts, సాధన...
Size: 8 1/2" x 11" (21.5 cm x 28 cm)
Surface: Acid free Paper

Sunday, November 19, 2017

Conquer your-self...

Indian Classical Dance - Hands Mudra
It is not easy to get the love towards anything going for a long-time especially when it is not part of your day-to-day life. Unless you dedicate your "self" from time to time, it is very hard. You need to conquer your "self" first to be dedicated. Once you conquer your "self", you can get going to reach your goal!

"If you do not conquer self, you will be conquered by self." -Napoleon Hill

Happy Painting!

Details
Title: Indian Classical Dance - Hands Mudra
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Reference: Random Picture from my collection
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 12" x 18" (30.5 cm x 46 cm)
Surface: Arches 140lb, Cold Press

Sunday, November 12, 2017

Use the talents...

Indian Classical Dance - Hands Mudra
The most striking feature of Indian Classic Dance is the use of Mudras, meaning gestures shown by the head, hands, and legs. These gestures are mixed with dance in order to express the meaning and expressions of the background music and song lyrics.

Anybody can learn fine-arts. But one who possesses natural talent stands out. This natural talent can easily be found in Indian Classical Dance. Possessing talent is only one thing. Practicing and using the talent is more important than possessing it. Talent not used is no better than not having a talent!

It's been one of my dreams to paint several such selected Mudras in my Paintings. Though I tried one few years ago, I never finished it. I am quite happy to start this series with this very first one in this series.

"Use what talents you possess, the woods would be a very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best." - Henry Van Dyke, poet (10 Nov, 1852-1933)

Happy Painting!

Details
Title: Indian Classical Dance - Hands Mudra
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Reference: Random Picture from my collection
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 12" x 18" (30.5 cm x 46 cm)
Surface: Arches 140lb, Cold Press

Saturday, November 4, 2017

Continue to exist...

Indian Classical Dance - Kathak
Watercolors on Paper
Attempts are never wasted. The more you attempt the better you get at it. Continue to do and put your efforts in what you are passionate about. I don't have time for it - is only a lie to yourself. If you love something, either you have time for it, or you will find time for it. Make attempts to live now and continue to exist after.

"You exists in only what you do." - Federico Fellini

Happy Painting, make efforts for your existence ;)

Details
Title: Indian Classical Dance - Kathak
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Reference: Bhanu Priya  (Aalaapana) from my own collection
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 11" x 14" (28 cm x 35.5 cm)
Surface: Arches 140lb, Cold Press

Sunday, October 29, 2017

Indian Classical Dance - Kuchipudi...

Indian Classical Dance - Kuchipudi
Watercolors on Paper

Happy Painting ;)

Details
Title: Indian Classical Dance - Kuchipudi
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Reference: Bhanu Priya  (Aalaapana) from my own collection
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 11" x 14" (28 cm x 35.5 cm)
Surface: Arches 140lb, Cold Press

Saturday, October 28, 2017

Be Simple to be Great...

Telugu Simplicity - Watercolors on Paper
Simplicity is the ultimate beauty in life. Be simple, lead a simple life. Start each day like a beginner. Keep learning, learn from mistakes, get better and turn everyday into a perfect day.

"There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth." - Leo Tolstoy

Happy painting!

Details
Title: Telugu Simplicity
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Reference: Random Pictures from my collection
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 11" x 14" (28 cm x 35.5 cm)
Surface: Arches 140lb, Cold Press

Sunday, October 22, 2017

Travel back in time with memories...

Statue at NewPort Mansions
Watercolors on Paper
When I visited Newport Mansions, Rhode Island this summer, a bare-breasted woman statue found in Rose Garden of Rosecliff Mansion caught my attention. This painting is based on a picture I took. The mansions are filled with stunning Sculptures, beautiful Paintings and wonderful Art works. Rich people who got those mansions built truly had a sense for Art and they lived their full life in those mansions with nothing but Art and beautiful Nature around them.

This statue of a woman is located in Rose Garden outside Rosecliff Mansion. I am not sure how many people passing by on the way to the beautiful ocean-front back yard stop by at this statue to admire the beautiful sculpture work. It was really stunning!

I am glad I seized the moment of my admiration of this beautiful statue in my own painting now.

"Time moves in one direction, memory in another." - William Gibson

Put memories into your works and travel back in time. Keep Painting!

Details
Title: Rosecliff Statue
Mediums: Watercolors on Paper
Reference: A photograph taken by me when I visited Rosecliff Mansion, Newport, RI
Inspiration: Passion for Arts...
Size: 11" x 14" (28 cm x 35.5 cm)
Surface: Arches 140lb, Cold Press