AutumnSee

Musician

2012-02-19T19:16:00.001+05:30

Acrylic on Canvas, 24 by 24 inches.

I don’t think this is quite finished yet. It started off being a chorus of women, but that wasn’t working, so I turned the canvas upside down and the guitarist emerged. He had quite a scowl, but then that went too. Let’s see what happens to him next.

More Music

2012-01-19T19:14:00.001+05:30

I’ve put aside the others for a bit and started on this one. I’ve six new canvases to start too tomorrow. Great joy!

WIP–New Works on Music - 2

2012-01-02T21:51:00.001+05:30

More progress on the paintings, but they are not complete yet.

WIP–New Works on Music

2011-12-30T17:11:00.000+05:30

I’m having some trouble with these. They are not really pulling together, and I’m kind of flummoxed about where I’m going.

Blue

2011-12-18T19:09:00.001+05:30

It’s been a difficult month, but I feel a bit lighter having done this.

Not Thinking of You

2011-03-26T21:00:00.001+05:30

This type of work is somewhat like the pen and ink drawings I do.

Not something that makes any sense or is supposed to mean anything, but something that has to be got out of the way at the start of the day. A loosening up exercise, I guess.

It’s a small A4 size work, and I’m thinking of doing several more of women and then putting them all together and see how the whole looks.

The reason I’m doing women right now is because I read a really stupid article about how women “should behave”, and it annoyed the hell out of me. Some people really don’t belong in this century, and I wish I could build a time machine just so I could send them back to a more fitting retrograde period. But then again, why add to the misery of the women back there?

Self-Portrait - 6

2011-03-19T19:43:00.001+05:30

I’m down with malaria.

Tree and Grass

2011-02-25T20:05:00.001+05:30

I bought a new tin of poster colors, and I felt like a landscape today. I’m going to be doing sketches around the garden, one per day.

Walk in the Park

2011-02-23T17:44:00.001+05:30

I had such fun doing this. It is a digital collage using bits and pieces from other artworks. Those works were done in water-color and gouache. The couple was a pen and ink drawing.

Since it is made up of layers, this will do for the Illustration Friday submission.

Sleeping Boy

2011-02-17T19:26:00.001+05:30

I really like this one. I’ve been to a place like this, and there was a wonderful sense of peace.

Blue Flowers Behind Me

2011-02-16T13:44:00.000+05:30

That’s not me. That’s just someone with blue flowers behind them.

WIP–New Works

2010-11-18T20:46:00.000+05:30

Here are some new works I’m doing. I’ve been listening a lot to Dmitri Shostakovich and also to a lot of Celtic and Gaelic Music (particularly the Transatlantic Sessions), and, in both cases, the music really lights up my brain. Anyway, so I’m having a totally lovely time, with the art and the writing and the violin.

GreenFace

2010-09-09T19:57:00.001+05:30

Here's one I'm working on. It's not new, I started it several months ago and then forgot about it, and it resurfaced last week when I cleared out the studio for reflooring .

It's a large painting, about three feet by four feet, on paper and done in a mix of acrylic and pastel.

I've a very good feeling about this one. It's going to turn out really terrific.

I rediscovered a whole lot of other paintings along with this one, and it's just very exciting and a whole load of fun to see them again.

Pastel - Just Loonda

2010-06-07T07:13:00.000+05:30

The title is from a funny romance book review by Mrs. Giggles.

I'm busy working on my book at present, so everything else has more or less taken a backseat. The writing is turning out to be very one-track obsessive. I'm enjoying myself hugely though.

This work, in oil pastels, is around 30 by 40 inches. A bit larger, I think.

Further On

2010-03-22T23:22:00.003+05:30

I'm doing a little everyday. A bit more work and then I think I'm done with these. Now I'm wondering what I should call these. The one of the right is a cafe scene (either that, or they are at an art party trying to be highbrow) and in the left the chap is playing the piano while she sings in the background.

Work In Progress

2010-03-16T22:39:00.000+05:30

What I'm currently working on. The paintings are in oil and 30 by 40 inches. When I'm stuck, I sing.

My dog Chubary keeps me company, as you see.

Rangapanchami

2010-03-04T23:19:00.000+05:30

Tomorrow is Rangapanchami. This is the Hindu Spring Festival. It occurs five days after Holi, and is wonderful fun. A day of water sprays and bright colors. Natural, of course. We are ecological-minded here.

Self-Portrait - 5

2010-02-06T01:06:00.002+05:30

If this hadn't the wonderful title of 'Self-Portrait 5', it would be called 'Once in a Blue Moon'.
"Once in a Blue Moon I forget about Blue
It's a color that sticks to me like Glue.
I even went and painted it in the Loo.
They hid the tin before I could do the rest of the house too!"

Self-Portrait - 4

2010-02-04T23:57:00.001+05:30

This is what happened to me after I ate a technicolored fruit.

I've noticed something important about me - you have to tie me up to keep me away from blue, yellow, orange, magenta and green.

I once had such a fixation on the color blue that everything I bought, consciously and unconsciously, from clothes to umbrellas to the dog's leash, used to be blue. I've recovered somewhat these days.

I also once went overboard with green when painting a vegetable market scene. The vegetables were green, the stalls were green, the people wore green, the trees were green, the birds in the trees were green. The professor held it up to the class as an example he didn't want to ever see again and said, "I suppose we should be grateful you didn't paint the sky green too, huh?"

And then he vented his spleen at a friend of mine who had painted a zoo scene with a three-legged peacock.

"You idiot! Is there even such a thing as a three-legged peacock!"

"But, Professor, don't you see, that's exactly why they have him in the zoo!"

Self-Portrait - 3

2010-01-29T09:13:00.002+05:30

I got bitten by a vampire. A VEgeTaRian vampire. ;-)

Next? Competition for Dora Maar.

Self-Portrait - 2

2010-01-28T10:37:00.001+05:30

I look much more like me today than I did yesterday. :D

For some reason, I haven't done that many self-portraits and I seem to shy away from realistic works, but I had such fun doing this and I like my strokes here. Considering the horrible, horrible landscape I did last week - and am not posting here - this is a big improvement.

Regular, constant practice is the mantra, of course. It's rather ridiculous to not have done much for quite a long while, and then suddenly expect everything to fall effortlessly in place.

Tomorrow I'll try something different. Maybe work just in black and white and red.

Self-Portrait - 1

2010-01-27T09:05:00.000+05:30

After quite a long gap, I've started painting again. I've decided to do one self-portrait a day and in ArtRage. I have five oil on canvas works going on right now, but my camera died and I won't be posting those until I get a new one.

I'm also in the process of revamping this blog. It's got a new header for starters, it went from a black background to a white one, and there will be some more changes coming along. The main one being, of course, doing more work and posting more regularly.

BlueRain Mountains

2009-04-08T22:38:00.001+05:30

If you walk far enough, you will reach the BlueRain mountains. Everything there is larger than life and greener and brighter too, because it rains every morning and every evening. A light blue, life-giving rain. On the mountain slopes, carpets of flowers bloom. Yellow and pink and blue and white and orange and red. I'm going to paint them one of these days.

Violin Series

2008-11-20T07:05:00.003+05:30

I'm working on a new series involving music and especially violins. Here're two of the works done digitally in ArtRage.

The Gold Fields

2008-02-02T23:29:00.001+05:30

The scan didn't catch the colors at all well. The image below, taken with a digital camera, comes closer.

I have a lovely box of waterproof inks that I intend to finish this month.

Two Talking

2008-02-01T21:38:00.000+05:30

I'm getting my rhythm back and I'm darned thrilled.

I couldn't stop dancing around with this. Gad, you frocking genius, I thought, look at those loverly, loverly COLORS!!!

And the BALANCE!

Woo-HOO!!

Nothing can touch the feeling of a painting coming along JUST right!!!

I LOVE painting MADLY!!

Patches

2008-01-26T16:43:00.001+05:30

I haven't been posting here for rather a long bit. From Monday, I expect to do a painting daily, be it in oil, acrylic, pastel or sketchpen.

Rainy Afternoon

2007-08-23T12:59:00.000+05:30

Drawing - Portrait of my Father

2007-03-04T19:06:00.000+05:30

I've been looking through some old papers, and I found this quote from Master Han. It's to do with martial arts, but can very well apply to painting and violin-playing as well.

"You will never learn to do any endeavor properly unless you are willing to give yourself time. I think you are accustomed to having everything come easily to you, but this is not the way of life or of the martial arts. To give yourself time is to actively work toward a goal without setting a limit on how long you will work."

The Wave

2007-02-21T19:14:00.000+05:30

In honor of the disappearing Scream

Singer

2007-02-17T18:48:00.000+05:30

He sings with an upcoming band called 'Moon-Web'. He was going to become a concert pianist, but got sidetracked. He says he's never regretted it.

When he plays the piano, he can actually move you to laugh or cry. He's that good.

River in the Jungle

2007-02-12T12:08:00.000+05:30

I think it's the Amazon River, and they're trying to find their way out. Someone told them you should follow a stream, because it will always, always lead to the river. Nobody told them about piranhas or leeches though. Come to think of it, nobody ever told them they would find themselves stranded in the middle of the Amazon ever. It is a curious thing, surfing the net and landing up in real water.

Profile of Valentina Xenos

2007-01-31T17:07:00.000+05:30

Valentina Xenos is a singer I know. She is one of the funniest and kindest people around. And even more temperamental than I am. ;-)

Painting - Dalhousie

2007-01-16T22:36:00.000+05:30

I've been looking up some old stuff today and found this one. It was painted from a roof-top in Dalhousie. Knife-painting in Acrylic.

Painting - Blue Day 2

2006-10-02T12:48:00.000+05:30

Painting - Girl in Yellow Scarf

2006-09-25T12:30:00.000+05:30

Painting - MusikMan

2006-09-20T17:44:00.001+05:30

Painting - Four Trees

2006-09-07T13:08:00.001+05:30

Les Oranges

2006-08-27T01:54:00.001+05:30

Painting - The Window

2006-08-26T12:44:00.000+05:30

Painting - The Uncertainty Principle

2006-08-25T18:41:00.002+05:30

I did this work while researching Werner Heisenberg's 'The Uncertainty Principle'. So the title. The work actually has nothing to do with physics. I always paint first, title later.

Anyway, about Heisenberg and his principle, it took me rather a long time to really grasp the concept and that quite annoyed me at first. THEN it occurred to me - you're not a physicist, you haven't studied physics in a long time, it took this man, a dedicated physicist, a long time to get it correct, so isn't it in fact quite normal that you didn't get it at the very first go?

Painting - War 7

2006-08-25T04:19:00.000+05:30

Painting - Moon by the Spoonful

2006-08-22T22:07:00.000+05:30

The Moon

Painting - Progress and Enlightenment

2006-08-17T23:40:00.000+05:30

The Perspective of Aasif Mandvi.

Painting - Unthoughtful

2006-08-16T18:48:00.000+05:30

War 4

2006-08-14T22:04:00.000+05:30

Painting - War 3

2006-08-13T17:11:00.000+05:30

Illustration Friday - Opposites

2006-07-21T22:00:00.000+05:30

Painting - Faces

2006-07-13T00:17:00.000+05:30

Collage - Aftermath of a Massacre

2006-06-16T18:29:00.000+05:30

Collage - Jumble

2006-06-11T21:52:00.000+05:30

Painting - Confusion

2006-06-06T19:26:00.000+05:30

Painting - Red Sunset

2006-06-05T20:32:00.000+05:30

Illustration Friday - Portrait

2006-06-02T19:56:00.000+05:30

Self-portrait. And another drawing

Painting - I Need To Escape

2006-05-31T13:07:00.000+05:30

No, the title is not a social or personal statement. It's just something that popped into my head after I'd finished.

Painting - Silence

2006-05-25T09:26:00.000+05:30

Painting - Blue Day

2006-05-24T18:00:00.000+05:30

Painting - At Serengeti

2006-05-23T09:45:00.000+05:30

Gouache, Ink, Water-color, Oil Pastels

Painting - Portrait in Green

2006-05-22T07:27:00.000+05:30

Oil

Painting - The Classroom

2006-05-21T06:30:00.000+05:30

Gouache

Painting - The Storm Within

2006-05-20T06:38:00.000+05:30

Digital

Painting - Trees

2006-05-19T09:58:00.000+05:30

Digital

Painting - Butterflies

2006-05-18T11:30:00.000+05:30

Digital

Painting - Spring Time

2006-05-17T11:04:00.001+05:30

Digital

Painting - Chinese Bird

2006-05-17T10:30:00.000+05:30

Water-color

Painting - Michael

2006-05-15T09:51:00.000+05:30

Digital

Collage - Interior

2006-05-15T07:24:00.000+05:30

Painting - Night Music

2006-05-15T07:20:00.000+05:30

Painting - Homeward Bound

2006-05-14T00:03:00.000+05:30

Painting - Tuareg

2006-05-13T23:27:00.000+05:30

I can't believe I did this one in an hour. I painted with the entire arm instead of just the wrist. I'd a lovely time. And I like the result.

Painting - Opening Night at Serengeti

2006-05-13T22:55:00.000+05:30

Painting - Llareggub Pub

2006-05-13T22:49:00.000+05:30

Painting - YellowPinkBlack

2006-05-13T22:45:00.000+05:30

Painting - Death

2006-05-13T22:42:00.000+05:30

Painting - Self-portrait as a Clone

2006-05-13T22:41:00.000+05:30

Painting - Her Rough Side

2006-05-13T21:46:00.007+05:30

Art Statement

2006-05-13T21:46:00.001+05:30

Statement:

I like to create - and see - art that rekindles a light-hearted feeling of happy days - a music you once heard and will again - just around the sunlit bend.

I recently took a closer look at the work I’ve done so far and it seems to me that the human figure predominates in my work. I wouldn’t say realistic, but not completely abstract either. I have done very little completely abstract work, in the sense of only color arrangements. Often, if I’m veering that way, I seem to veer right around and produce a human being. It is sometimes rather maddening and frustrating, not being able to move away from painting figures – any kind - how come I don’t see anything else? – why not a tree or a house or something? – no, it has to be a figure – I can’t rest easy otherwise.

Maybe at some later point I’ll move on. I’m already making the effort. I don’t want to keep painting – however well or otherwise – within the same boundaries. Painting is about extending boundaries, not playing it safe. And so, of course, is life – I don’t want to wake up one morning, ninety and half gone, with a ‘Played it Safe’ certificate hanging on my wall – no, I would rather be a sprightly ninety, with much still yet to come, the sort of lovely old person that young people converge around, if not for the pearls of wisdom, atleast for the flourishing wit.

Background:

'I paint because I'm angst-ridden and anti-social, with a peculiar view of the world, and the white surface of the canvas maddens, distracts, obsesses me to such an extent that I find myself moved by a powerful, hidden force to splatter it with paint.'

Well, actually, the more prosaic truth is - 'I paint because the materials were there and I thought, well, let's give old Van Gogh a run for his talent'.

Of course that's not the whole prosaic truth either.

I analyzed my mind the other day - I sat down and turned on the music and tried really hard to plumb mental depths hitherto unplumbed. Then it came to me - not from the mysterious deep, but from the shallow surface - the best and simplest reason for practicing art. It was the song that was playing that lit the bulb - 'I get a kick out of you'.

My method of working is rather simple too. I apply color – a lot of colors – to surface, make sure I make a fine mess, and then I look at the mess for a long time and slowly sense begins to emerge from the reigning chaos. I follow it and the painting takes its own shape until at some point a balance is reached and a voice inside says okay, that’s it, stop, and I stop, and the painting is done.

Since Art and Life are supposed to be inextricably entwined, I guess this is the story of my life as well.