Catty Conundrums

 

In the last couple of years, a black cat has been visiting my garden almost daily. Sometimes hiding behind the lilies, sometimes crouching under the frangipani. At other times, just passing through with a swagger and familiarity that sends the birds tittering away in fright.

Many times when I am out for a walk I notice that if a black cat crosses the path, folks ahead of me often stop for awhile or change their course. I am aware that in many cultures black cats are considered a bad omen and associated with negativity. But who can explain this to a cat lover? For the folks out there who feed black cats or own one as a pet, they are a source of joy and succour. And shall remain so, regardless of what the rest of the world thinks.

While I am not exactly a cat lover but I hold no grudges against a creature just because of its colour. Rather, I admire the sleek coat of the black cat that visits my garden often. Its fur shines in the sunlight as it swiftly darts between my plants. Its eyes speak volumes as I run to chase it away, for it digs up my plant beds.

That is why I thought of capturing this visitor in my artwork. For omens and prejudices are not worth a meow in my world. And they shall never cast a shadow on my creative outings.

Capturing Oreo Again

Remember my grand plans of doing a series on the canine inhabitants of our lane (see here). Well, progress has been super slow on that front as I have my fingers in too many pies! At any given point of time, I seem to have half a dozen projects running simultaneously (big eye roll at myself). But well, let me not digress...

In these past few months, all I managed to complete was this full portrait of Oreo (read more about him here). Since the guy loves bread and bones, I added them in. And those little triangles represent the tid-bits that he keeps getting from everyone in the lane.

Don't know if this series will go any further but if I add any new paintings, they'll surely be shared here. Do check back for updates. To commission any pet portraits, write to  creativerumblings@gmail.com.

More Journal Snippets

As an artist, I find myself using journals to express myself very often. A journal is like a diary, only more visual. You are already seeing pages from my Nature Journal every month. So thought of sharing a few pages from my Transition Journal that I finished earlier this month.

The above picture is the front cover, and the picture below features an amalgamation of some individual pages along with the back cover.

In these difficult days when our world is in the grip of the pandemic, maintaining a daily/weekly/fortnightly or even monthly journal is a good way to release some pent up stress, sadness and frustration. Try it, dear readers!

Mixed Media Squares

For today's post, we need to go back in time a bit. Let us revisit these previous posts of mine from February 2016 - Faces and Figures, and The Making of a Flower Girl. For a recap, those artworks were made in mixed media using a variety of techniques like stamping, collaging, and finally some intuitive mark making. 

I landed up making quite a few of these 10"x10" mixed media squares, and tucked them away in some corner of my supplies cupboard. Some personal upheavals later that year made me forget about these completely, and I did not post about them here. Till we moved houses and cities last year and I recently rediscovered them while searching for something else. 

Lined up together they looked so pretty that I decided to dedicate a much-deserved post to them finally. So I will not go into the details of the process (for that you can see the previous posts from February 2016), but let you feast your eyes.

Can you identify this singer? My hubby's favourite!

I simply love this cat portrait.

Here is another view of the ladies. They definitely brightened up our lockdown days. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Little Miss Sunshine

When the sun plays rookie and the chill freezes your bones, this is how folks like me warm up....

Meet 'Little Miss Sunshine' who is full of beans and frolicking under the warm sun. :)

Hope seeing her warms the cockles of your heart, as creating her warmed up mine!

Showcasing Bottle Art at 'Artivity'

How time changes perspectives!.... Read on to know why I write this. And yes, I'm sounding a long post alert too. So proceed at your own risk! :)


The Creative Rumblings stall at Artivity, Select Citywalk

To think that just a month back I was choosing to ignore the invitation mail from the Select Citywalk team for participating in the Artivity event. And here I am, giving you all a round-up of our experience. Yes, it all started on the wrong note.... by my not wanting to participate. But then, as they say, destiny had other plans!


View from the inside

A close-up of our name board

This was the first edition of Artivity at Select Citywalk, and it was aimed at promoting both traditional and modern art forms. There were 16 stalls in all, each giving a glimpse into a special form of art. Right from traditional crafts like wire craft, rice etching and calligraphy to modern ones like decoupage, dry flower crafts to bottle art.


At the risk of sounding clichéd, I have to say that our experience at Artivity was quite similar to our first exhibition at Gurgaon last Diwali. So many people showered love by visiting our stall, taking time to look at the pieces on display, clicking pictures (sometimes with and sometimes without our permission!), openly appreciating our work and saluting our creative thinking. Our penchant for upcycling and giving the discarded a new lease of life won us lots of accolades. 


The uniqueness of bottle art was very well received as countless people stopped by to appreciate, to ask us how we work, what materials we use, and most importantly, to show their children, family and friends this unusual form of art.

Interacting with our admirers and patrons

Many people who had seen our work on Friday came back with others in tow on the next two days, giving us knowing smiles! Sitting three whole days doing 12-hour shifts in a mall is not easy; we were dead tired by the end of it all. But such a heart-warming response made all our efforts worth it.

Loved the joy on the faces of the young and old alike

Our original concept of turning old CDs into rangoli diya trays was also a big hit, both with elders and the young crowd. Not only did the diya trays sell like hot cakes, many promised us to try out similar decorations this coming Diwali. These encouraging reactions to our endeavours always keeps us on our toes, motivating us to further innovate with recyclable materials. Must confess I felt elated being recognized for my small efforts in the overwhelming presence of the big brands surrounding us.

Discussing, explaining and conveying our thoughts

The artist as mommy on the final day :)

And of course, all this would never have been possible without the 24/7 support of my home team. The youngest ones who showed a little more independence so mom could work on creating enough inventory. The eldest one who kept his demands to the minimum so as not to burden the rest. The mother, who handled the home front single-handedly with a smile, and had encouraging words on her lips every time I had moments of self doubt. And the hubby, who stood (sometimes behind and sometimes beside) like a rock, steadying me each time I faltered. Last but not the least.... my buddies (you know who you are) who trooped in to motivate, encourage, support and lift us up. I feel blessed, truly!


Since we received a lot of enquiries, I plan to introduce workshops shortly. So keep an eye on this space and our Facebook page, and you'll see announcements soon. Till then, apart from resting my tired bones, let me bask in the glory of a job well done. Whoever heard of modesty?!?.... Modesty is out of fashion!! ;) Hope you enjoyed reading this long post.

The Fort Musician

Ever been to Jodhpur? If yes, then you will share my sentiments. If no, then I recommend a visit. It is one city that definitely has a charm of its own. The quaint marketplaces, the narrow undulating streets, the houses with their jharokhas (carved windows) and carved wooden doors, the blue painted walls of houses in the older part of the city, and of course, the awesome food.

But the most enchanting of all my experiences in Jodhpur was the Mehrangarh Fort. Standing atop a hill overlooking the entire city, the fort appears majestic even from a distance. And once you are inside, you are transported to another world altogether! The royal ambience of yore, with the tinted glass windows and intricate carvings. Musicians playing traditional Rajasthani instruments in the background only add to the charm.

Now you know where this painting came from.... it is one of my favourite pieces from the works I have done this year. Again, this painting has very little brushwork; thick layers of paint applied with a spatula create a beautifully textured effect (click on the picture to see an enlarged version). And looking at it, I am transported back to the famous fort of Mehrangarh.... so when are you packing your bags?!! :)

Portrait Trials

Last weekend I tried my hand at portraits despite having zero training on this. Just picked up a newspaper, opened a random page, and attempted a few mugshots from it.

Managed to get some degree of likeness with the actual pictures but eyes do seem to be a tough area. It is not for nothing that they say that eyes define a person's face. You get them right, and almost everything else will fall in place.

As my dear hubby rightly says, portraiture is all about lines. You have to know which ones to use and which ones to skip.

With one of my favourite Bollywood icons, the inimitable Dev Anand passing on last weekend, I just have to try sketching him now.