We have all been gifted with talent. While some continue to pursue it as a hobby, others find their way to turn it into a profession.
But it takes courage to make art. It takes courage to experiment. To follow your passion and show it to the world. It takes courage to come out of your cocoon and give yourself wings to fly, to create your own journey, you’d be proud of !
Working on this article has given me immense pleasure to have known such beautiful people who love what they create, it’s been a difficult choice to choose from them especially when there’s an abundant artwork to choose from. I am glad I could be a part of documenting their stories and bringing them to the world.
Here’ s a list of the shortlisted artists with their work that defines who they are:
#1 Sushmita Rao @cappuchinnu
A quirky Instagram handle name, this young girl calls herself amateur and inexperienced on social media whose journey is yet to unfold. However, her work speaks on her behalf. A doodle artist, documenting the everyday tales of life, she adds a touch of comedy to the daily chronicles. You ask her, what inspires or motivates to create such doodles, she sarcastically laughs at the situations life puts her into.
“ My life itself is a big motivation, instead of being sad about the little things that keep knocking me down, I choose to rather laugh at it aloud!”
What’s interesting about her work is that she makes the daily hassles look so easy with her caricatures, it makes you smile rather than frown at the challenges you come across in your day to day routine. For cappuchinnu ( as she calls herself on Instagram), doodling has been an escape, a relief from the mundane life, though she doesn’t seem to really crib about her job. It is quite evident that her work is a refreshing take on life. No surprise her art has connected with the people on Instagram leaving her with a huge responsibility to better herself every day!
#2 Sehaj Kandhari @lettersbysehaj
Sehaj, who has received the artistic gene from her mother is the versatile one from the selected artists. Juggling her creativity between calligraphy, illustrations and doodling, a majority of her work is a combination of the first two. Having a strong liking for calligraphy since childhood, Sehaj calls the art her kind of meditation, finding peace as well as connecting with oneself.
Her biggest inspiration has been her mother, who is into calligraphy for about 18 years now and Sehaj has been organizing calligraphy workshops in Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Gurgaon and Jalandhar along with her mother.
When you have a look at her Instagram account, you get to see a myriad of colours and variations in her designs, her recent musings being the Punjabi lyrics in English fonts, ‘ho kese aeseyaan nigahaan mainu takeya’ by Satinder Sartaj ‘Tere Akheyaan ch noor kina saraa’, turning out to be a favourite among the audiences. I asked her how her journey has been so far and the answer I received in return made this humble person so likeable among the Instagrammers.
“All the difficult times have taught me to be stronger and always believe in myself. ‘Mann neeva matt uchi’ that means keep your mind low and your morality high is what I strongly believe in.”
#3 Vikash Thakur @hasslarart
The only male artist from the selected bunch, we were elated to receive participation from him. Vikash’s majority of work is a creation of his imagination, which attracts you towards his illustrations. Calling himself a doodler and an illustrator, his work is an amalgamation of both the art forms which brings out the best of his creativity. He takes inspiration from his daily chores especially his regular commute to doodle which brings life to his work. The colourful illustrations on different cities especially Mumbai is one of my favourites from his collection.
“ What differentiates you from others? Or what’s peculiar about your work?”
“Every artist adapts to a style of their liking, whereas I do not follow any particular style. It varies from time to time depending on what I come across. Whenever I see a work of art, I learn about it and make something new adding to it, my own taste”, he answers.
Vikash opted for 3D VFX during his graduation as he developed a liking for it after which he took up doodling. After watching his colleague’s illustrations, he was motivated to enter into the illustration world, which he successfully did with the help of his mentor. Hasslaart, his Instagram handle is a beauty to watch with a variety of work at the display.
#4 Gurleen Kaur @theconfused_artist_
Gurleen, a 19-year-old girl hailing from Ludhiana runs her Instagram account by the name theconfused_artist _. You take a look at her illustrations and you are bound to find a stark difference between her age and the maturity in her work. It is sharp, brutal yet full of emotions which develops a strong connection with the audience. A conceptual illustrator and painter, Gurleen says that her art defines who she is. She expresses herself, her art, the reality of her surroundings through her drawings and the positive response she gets from the people inspires her to draw more.
Gurleen started her journey with black and white drawings, however, she gradually shifted towards colourful water paintings. She credits her accomplishments to the people she met on her way.
Ask her what’s so special about her drawings, she answers in the simplest form., “My art has a part of me in it. It reflects honestly about the conditions people live in it. And that’s what makes it more relatable.”
Gurleen, at such a young age has also designed illustrations for books – Romancing with words by Anshita Solanki and Chintan Mistri, The Girl by Nikita Singh and Vibgyor – Shades of life by Unekha which stands out a few of her best works.
#5 Khushbu Dahiya @art_by_khushbu
A predominant Mandala artist, Khushbu has evolved herself into the artistic field. Painting with watercolours and oil shades, hand-lettering, art journaling and her recent stint being calligraphy, she finds her inspiration by losing herself to nature. Be it the majestic mountains, clean waters, tall trees or the sheer calmness that the rivers have to offer. Khushbu has been playing with colours right from her early days and continues to pursue it along with the mainstream colour. You ask her “What keeps you pulling towards the paints and brushes?” , she replies earnestly.
“Art is something that disconnects me from the outer world and its materialistic demands. I am more of myself when I am holding the brush.”
When you happen to browse through her work on Instagram, the vibrancy of the colours is what attracts you the most and makes her stand out from the other artists. My personal favourite if you’d ask is the art journal with a variety of quotes.
“Oh, they are from my favourite novels or movie. I dedicate a page in my journal whenever I come across something new”.
It wouldn’t be too far when Khushbu would probably start publishing customised hand journals.
#6 Amrutha Routhu @amruthaarts
Amrutha is an engineer by the day and a mandala artist in the evenings. During her yearly vacations at the time of her graduation, she used the opportunity to explore her art where she would sit with her drawing tools the entire day and work on them. This she says, has helped her grow from the beginner that she was. Initially, Amrutha looked for inspiration from designs of other artists with similar work, but now she says, “I feel like my own artwork is my inspiration. Each time I look at the final piece I stare at them and grab the chance to find more ideas on what to draw next.”
Being the perfectionist that she is, Amrutha likes her designs intricate and neatly done with symmetric lines and curves. She doesn’t stop improving them unless the work looks to the point.
With Instagram as a platform to promote her art, she has been putting up her work regularly where she has made customised gifts for her friends. Recently, she found a community which conducts art workshops and the feather on the cap is she would be conducting her first workshop in the coming work.
All we would like to tell this little miss perfectionist is good luck for this new beginning.
#7 Aisha Singh @aaishasin.art
oungest one in the selected artists, Aisha does not like to frame herself in any one particular genre. She likes to have and know it all – calligraphy, water colouring, acrylic paintings, illustrations and lettering solely depending on what state of mind she is in. An indolent artist, she works to the best of her abilities when constantly nudged about deadlines. Her art is open-ended, surreal, free.
“That is what art is supposed to be right?”, she says.
True to her perks, her Instagram timeline is a garden brimming with different flowers. Her August was about calligraphy, September epoxy clay earrings while her October is about feminine art, that is what you would find on her wall at present.
Aisha draws her motivation from her mother and her paternal aunt, who have been artists themselves. Their constant push and enthusiasm is what drives her to push her limits and discover more in her field.
“So what is it that differentiates you from fellow artists?”, I ask her.
And pat came the reply, “ I am not a method painter. As soon as my fingers grasp the slender piece of wood all those debating thoughts and ideas migrate to the tip of the brush whirling amidst the conspiracies the child inside plots.”
#8 Shreya Ghosh @drrawerr
Which started as a hobby to distract herself from studies, Shreya’s doodles have now found a permanent space in her daily life. A technical profession, when Shreya is not coding during her work time, you’d probably find her doodling with pen on paper. Art, for her, is to express herself, to tell stories to people. She thus gets inspired by anything and everything under the sun. Since the time she began doodling, Shreya has been experimenting with people, faces, comics, daily incidences and relevant social topics.
When I ask her, “Why do you doodle so often? What is it that attracts you to it?”
She quickly answers, “In a word full of chaos, art keeps me sane and keeps the child in me alive. It has been almost a year since I have been drawing every day. It has not only helped me polish my skills but also makes adulthood a little less boring.”
Sneha believes that art doesn’t have to be complex or intricate. Even the simplest things can look artistic if done earnestly. In fact, it is the simplest forms that take time and energy and she would rather prefer doing that instead of designing complex art. She has been repeatedly honing her skills in doodles and is always open to experimenting.
TheUncommonbox is always looking out for people driven towards their passion and making a difference in the society with their work. We have always appreciated the efforts behind the work and will continue to support the community.
Content Written & Developed by Madhura Avinash. Follow her to read more about her writings.
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