ME ready...!!!

Cake is ready, Cookies are ready, Snowflakes are also ready.
Christmas is peeping from just around the corner!

At this point, if someone were to turn me into a two-dimensional and put me down on paper in color, this is what I would look like - cap, shirt and all, probably even hair... :D

Merry Merry Christmas Y'all...!!!

Snowflakes ready...!!!

Its Christmas Eve...

...and my quilled snowflakes are ready...!!!

Here they are...

(Now that I look at them here, they somehow look like quilled zentangles to me!)

Do you hear the jingle bells with me...? :)

Merry Christmas Y'all...!!!

Love At Every Sight...!!!

Dear Mr. Husband...

Just wanted to tell you that...

... with You, its Love At Every Sight...!!!

"MeghnAbhishek"

8" by 8", Pencil and a dash of Crayon on paper.

First Attempt at Quilling...!!!

Made this Birthday card for Mom-in-Law a while ago using Quilling techniques. This was my first attempt at quilling that I finished till the end. And I am happy how it turned out.

Here goes:

I really find the birdhouse and the little birdie super cute. Mr. Husband liked the fence best. Mom-in-Law loved the whole thing!

Kiddie stuff..?? :) :) :)

Well, quoting G. K. Chesterton, 

"When being a Kid stops being fun, then I will grow up...!!!"

Magnolia-ish...!!!

Cleaning up my shelves especially around year end is a customary thing for me. And while doing that yesterday, I found this painting. This is the first painting I did after my marriage, so that makes it about 2 years old. And it was done with minimal means. We were just settling in the new house and there was hardly any of my painting stuff around.

These are the basic Rangeela water colors which can be easily found for as less as ten rupees, and the paper is the rejected sheet which was found in the folds of a new shirt of Mr. Husband. 

I was watching some online painting tutorial on YouTube, and that is where this inspiration came from. Some imaginary Magnolia-ish flowers...

Take a look:

[ The best thing about this painting: After seeing this, Mr. Husband realized my potential, and got me amazing new colors, canvases and a lot of other stuff for painting. And even inspired me to make my first canvas - of 30" X 30". I was now responsible to give that my best shot, lest I disappoint him. 

Thanks to Mr. Muse's blessings (http://meghnasays.blogspot.in/2015/12/the-mentor-muse.html) and Mr. Husband's inspiration, that painting is now possessed by the Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (Retd.), Hyderabad. So, well, I take it that I did far from disappointing him. :) And that makes me feel good...!!! ]

Sir Muse, once again...!!!

Another creation: 

Acrylics on Canvas, 12" X 12".

May He always be with Y'All...!!!

Mickey Madness...!!!

As the soft early sunshine caressed my feet while I was sipping piping hot tea in my Mickey Mug sitting on my workstation on a beautiful breezy December Sunday, all my foster kids (http://meghnasays.blogspot.in/2015/12/foster-kids-in-my-balcony.html) swaying cheerfully on my right, I was somehow teleported to my childhood. 

A vivid recollection of how every evening at 6, without fail, my brother and I would be found fixated on the television screen for 'D-D-D-D-DD-DD-Disney Hour', just swam, frame by frame, before my eyes. Aladdin and Jasmine, Ariel and Sebastian, Balloo and Madam Mahalingam, and of course Mickey and Friends - Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, Pluto, Uncle Scrooge and his three quacky nephews - Oh! that was a beautiful world. And everything was so real. So believable. Mermaids existed, carpets could fly you around and we too wanted to earn so much that one day, we too could swim in gold coins whenever we'd feel busted by something called life.

I clearly recollected how the host Vishal would read letters sent from viewer kids like us from around the country, who would paint disney characters and make cards and write small poems and all just to express their love.

Unquestioningly, me and my brother also made a multitude of such paintings of our disney heroes, and sent many letters to the Zee Post Office - a cowboy Donald, a fairy Minnie and the wedding day of Aladdin and Jasmine - these are some of the paintings I still remember I made.

I think since then, I have always enjoyed drawing and painting Disney characters. 

Somehow, once again, I felt this strong urge to be childlike. And paint something Disney. Of course, this time, it wasn't for Disney Hour, but for the 'Man of the Hour' - Dear Mr. Husband, who was ingenuously sleeping in the next room, having the time of his dreams.

So, I drew up this cute little Mickey, painted it and strategically kept it on my pillow, such that it would be the first thing he'd see when he woke up.

I think the composition of the image, and the timing and placement, together did the trick. 

Here's what the finished product looked like:

Mr. Husband was so happy with this little surprise, he decided to take it to office with him and thumb-tack it on his desk's notice board. :D 

Thank you Disney, for making our childhood so much fun, dreamy and creative. And for introducing me to the joy of painting. Maybe, just maybe, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have known what colors mean to me...!!!

Madhubani Radha...!!!

I discovered a while ago, that Indian folk arts and I have a thing going on.

Last year, when I tried my hand at Warli (You may scroll down the blog for some of those paintings, or check the sidebar), the experience was as deeply satisfying as was this time while trying Madhubani.

Madhubani, literally means 'Forest of Honey' (Madhu = Honey, Ban = Van = Forest), and Madhuban is considered a region in the Mithila area of Nepal and the northern part of Bihar. Madhubani paintings were originally done with fingers, twigs, brushes, nib pens and matchsticks, using natural dyes and pigments. Now this art is easily found with acrylics on canvas, and even with water colors, for the sake of ease in handling and preservation.

Like other folk arts, Madhubani also widely depicts various celebrations and festivities, other than the everyday life of the glorious bygone era to which it belongs.

From the little that I have studied about Madhubani, Radha is my favorite muse, and Internet, in collaboration with National award winner Bharti D, my Guru Dronacharya.

This painting below was my first attempt at Madhubani, and I hope this marks the beginning of my 'Being Eklavya' series. I am guessing that the underlying idea for this series is self-explanatory.

For now, here is my first 'Madhubani Radha' - the epitome of beauty, grace and attitude, and despite being a part of the big painting, she seems so complete in herself that I couldn't resist bringing her on the blog.

Take a look:

It is an 8" by 10", water color and stains on paper.

I hope this 'thing' we have going on, me with the strokes and the washes, the colors and the hues, it all goes on a long way...!!!

The Mentor & The Muse...!!!

Inside Out

Here and About...!!!

Made around 10 years ago, on a cheerful August afternoon, this is the only one painting till date that could make me sit for 8 hours straight and get up only when it was complete.

And probably it is this painting that ignited in me the desire to paint on. And on.

The original creation is an ~ 8" X 12", poster colors on Engineering Graphics sheet. 

A bigger art print of size 12" X 18" X 1" can be ordered on:

http://www.spectrahut.com/modern-art-print-paintings-ganpati-ganesha-paintings.html

Stay precious, stay blessed everyone...!!!

Doodling Jughead...

...and Archiekins...

and Betty... 

and Little Archie... 

and Little Betty (with the gang)...

and Little Jughead... 

and well, yeah, Veronica too! 

But Hey Ron! Don't go bonkers, don't get mad at me, and pleese pleese don't sue me... 
I don't really know why or how you turned out...umm..a little, just a little fat...
Oh no, not Fat, its P-H-A-T - Pretty Hot And Tempting...!!! And methinks you turned out just awesome...!!!
:) :) :)

A small note: These Doodles could not benefit from any eraser. They are black ball pen ink on office paper, direct.

My First Multi-Panel Painting...!!!

While browsing my phone's Gallery yesterday, I saw this - my first multi-panel painting. 

About a year ago, Khushboo and Ankit asked me if I could pull off something like this for their baby www.spectrahut.com, and since the first instance, I was totally game. I am an impatient person, and the only reason I wanted to work on this project was because I believed that it could instill some patience in me. 

For the first time, I worked in layers and the complete journey was Zen. It took me about two weeks to come up with the final thing, which still was almost a year ago, and I am so surprised at myself it didn't yet made it to the blog.

So here it goes...And if you are interested in its art print, you can find the link below.

http://www.spectrahut.com/handpainted-wall-art-paintings-flower-painting.html

Thank you everyone for your encouragement! And once again, thanks a lot Khushboo and Ankit, for making me do this...!!!

Less is More...!!!

A few days back, the idea of minimalism got stuck into my head, because of reasons unknown and unsought.  But what I liked most about this concept was the beauty of simplicity. Underrated, maybe cliche, but so powerful!

Now, 'Minimalism' is a big concept in the world of art, with a history that dates back to early 1960s when it was born in New York as a reaction against 'Abstract Expressionism' which again is another big theory of its own.

Since I don't intend to wander in those territories here, I just wanted to share the following paintings which for me are a very happy reminder that things of beauty, no matter how simple and 'un-complex', are a joy forever, and that beauty, indeed, lies in the simple things of life. These paintings use at the most 3-4 colors, and some very basic outlines.

Take a look:

Childlike..? Yes! 
Naive..?? Yes again!

I am head over heels in love with the Childhood part of life, mine or anyone else's. No doubts then that G.K.Chesterton's quote: "when being a child stops being fun, then I will grow up" continues to be the ruling philosophy of my life. 

"Childhood" is the most uncomplicated time in our lives, where anything and everything mesmerizes us. Everything is possible and doable, all dreams achievable and everyone lovable. There are no unnecessary strings in the mind and heart that may entangle the soul later on. There are no convictions formed by loaning other's opinions. Whatever is, is original and novel. All is pure and unadulterated, or at least that is how it appears to be, and life is bliss. 

Isn't this how we really want our lives to be? Just Love, Laughter and Life. Simple, and therefore beautiful. Uncluttered, and therefore organized. Less, and therefore so much more!

Stay a child, everyone...!!! 

November Love...!!!

The month of November is a very special time of the year for me. Two years back, this was the month that totally changed my life, and for good beyond imagination.

The following painting is my salute to the effervescent spirit of this month, and to everything that I am so grateful for!

It is a 12" by 16", acrylics on Canvas. Inspired by SF based artist Nidhi.

May Love Prevail...!!! (Or should I say 'November Love... ' ;))

Stay Blessed Everyone.

Rhythm Therapy...!!!

Once again, I will let the hues do all the talking.

This time, it is 7" by 16", Water colors on paper.

Enjoy the beats, y'all...!!! 

Life - One Cup At A Time...!!!

May has been one hell of a month for me, braving the heat, travel and emotions. One thing, that helped me pull myself together time and again, was this painting I completed a short while ago. 

It is a 12" by 16", Acrylics on Canvas.

Stay Blessed Everyone!

Back To Water Colors...!!!

Felt like going back to Water Colors for a bit.
Some inspired creations. All in a night.
An ode in color to the effervescent spirit of Womanhood.

1. "Fluttering Dreams"

2. "Interlude"

3. "...half-hummed song"

More Power To Us...!

Lots of love.                                                                                                                                                                            

Remember Dec 12 with - Ye Dil Maange "Mor"...!!!

Since the latest posts on my blog must have made it amply clear that I am a big fan of the art of painting and recycling, many forthcoming posts may also talk on the same lines.

Here below, I am putting up another inspired painting, which I made as a gift for my parents for their wedding anniversary. Why this topic? There's a fair reason. Both my parents go for their daily walks in a campus which is abundant with peacocks. Especially in the rainy season, these birds put their full glory on display. And after coming home from their walk, Ma would call up and tell all about how they danced, or trotted around, even imitate their voice. So I wanted the gift to be something that both Ma and Pa could identify with, and something that was already a part of their lives.

This is how it turned out.

This is also acrylic on a 12 by 12 canvas.

When Ma first saw this painting, she was really happy and excited. When I told her that this was a gift for her wedding anniversary, the first thing she asked was, "Why aren't there two peacocks in the painting?"
But when I told her what I was thinking when I made it, along with a quick re-visit to the Biology class, that "only Peacocks are beautiful, the peahens really don't live up to the set expectations", she laughed out loud. This time she was not just convinced, but more than happy. :D

Lots of love. Stay tuned for more...!!!

Remember Dec 8 with - That Little Gift I made for my husband...!!!

One thing that I and my husband do have in common is that we are strong crusaders of "apni akal lagao" (use your own brains) brigade. 

Sometimes it is okay (read bearable) but more often than not, it is just impossible to believe some questions people ask, or things they do, or talk of. Now, I work from home, so the gamut of such experiences for me is reasonably, and thankfully, limited. But he goes out, and thereby deals with a whole range. And though I often suggested that he laugh away such situations, I really wanted to do something more about it, so that this whole deal becomes way more entertaining.

Suddenly one day, I stumbled upon this great idea. And I painted something for him and framed it. And gifted to him over lunch. I asked him to take it with him to office and put it on this workstation's tack-board. So, whenever he feels that there is possibility of some ingenious crassitude coming his way, he could look at the notice board and know what he had to do. Laugh it off.

Here is what the small framed painting looked like:

After a long time of using Acrylic colors, I used water colors for this one. And made the frame out of rolled newspaper, and painted it. And I so enjoyed the whole process. From start till the end. Believe me, I kept laughing all the while imagining his possible reactions. This one was truly, a treat to do!

Masterpiece or not, this one surely does what it is meant to do, every time...! :) 

Lots of love. Stay tuned for more...!!!

Remember December 7 with - My Painting of My Favorite Muse...!!!

People who know me and who know that I paint, also know that Lord Ganesha is my favorite muse!
Well, just the way He is for a lot of other artists.

This post shows how I last painted Him.

(This painting and the last one on Flowers are both Acrylic on Canvas, 12 by 12 inches.)

There are more coming up soon. Meanwhile, I would love to know your feedback and suggestions.

Lots of love. Stay tuned for more...!!!

Remember December 6 with - My Painting on Flowers...!!!

Agreed. That I did this painting a while ago. But I think this is one of the best ones I could make till now. And I always wanted to put it on the blog.

Here it is.

And for this one, I just feel like I will let the colors do all the talking.

Lots of love. Stay tuned for more...!!!