“Oh! I love these shirts, they are so vintage looking!! Said the young woman before scooping up a couple and buying them. Vintage looking? I guess she was referring to the low-tech printing process that I employ. Or maybe I really am aesthetically stuck in a different era. You really learn a lot at fairs. …
The Most Bestest, Amazing, Wonderful Book List
I have been thinking a lot about children’s books lately, and it seemed like a good time to post that list that my six year old daughter and I have been working on. The List of Most Bestest, Amazing, Wonderful Books. But first, a disclaimer: The Disclaimer The books on this list are a selection of children’s …
Dakshina Chitra (a post I should have written long ago)
“What was your favorite part of the trip to Chennai?” I asked my six year old. “Dakshina Chitra” She replied without even blinking first. I’m not surprised, it really is a wonderful place. Dakshina Chitra is a heritage center just outside Chennai, on the way to the beautiful beach town of Mahabalipuram. According to my …
A Fresh Start (again)
After my Summer of Germs, I thought it would be easy to make a fresh start and get back into work. I was wrong. Life has been throwing rotten bananas at me for a couple of months, and despite dodging a few of them (and using them to make banana bread), most of them have …
Al dente Art
A couple of days ago, I came across a T-shirt company whose slogan is “Perfectly imperfect”. I gaped in mild dismay “That should be my slogan” I thought ” They have my slogan!! Imperfection is definitely MY thing!” It’s true, I do like my design a little under-cooked, which is why I love printmaking so …
Ink and Courage
When I was 19 years old, I convinced my parents that I was mature enough to travel around Northwestern India on my own. I obviously possessed greater powers of courage and persuasion then.
My idea was to travel around with a sketchbook and camera, and produce an amazing portfolio of work that would help me to get into an Art college of my choice.
It worked.
While on this trip, I often ran out of art materials in places where there were no stores that sold them, so I improvised. I painted with spices such as turmeric and chilli, and used old pieces of fabric and packaging to draw on. But my favorite of these ad hoc materials by far was a stick from a neem tree that I had carved to a point. I happily filled sketchbooks with big, drippy ink drawings, and actually had a period of mourning when the stick finally broke, exhausted by my furious scribbling.
Many years later, I would range around woodlands like a crazed yeti, collecting sticks and branches for my students to dip into ink and draw with at school.
I have recently rediscovered the joys of drawing with ink. It is really so much fun.
It is hard not to relax when you draw with ink, because you have less control over the sorts of marks you produce, every line has an unexpected beauty to it. Try it.
Loosen up lady!
A blog about drawing and un-drawing…. I have produced some pretty uptight drawings, and now I’m going to have to unravel them a bit. One of the things I like most about henna, or mehndi, is the fluid way in which it is drawn. Henna artists don’t really plan out their designs in advance, they …
Return of the Thing
So here I am, back in the US of A. Land of the free, home of the brave, I’ll definitely need to remember the brave part, because right now I am shaking in my rubber flip flops. The idea of getting back into the swing of things is fairly terrifying right now. Breaks are good, …
Ode to London
I am in London, and all is well with the world. It is fantastic to be back in the city where I grew up, where everything is so familiar and comfortable. I feel like a missing puzzle piece that has finally been popped back into it’s place. I grew up in a leafy part of South …
Funny Signs
The Mysore Zoo is impressive in so many ways. It has a huge and varied collection of animals, some so rare and exotic that it seems quite unbelievable that you are looking at them. Some of the highlights of our visit were a white tiger, an albino peacock, a Tapir, and (much to my daughter’s …