Hi Reader,

Today I want to talk about how social media affects an artist. And why it is important to maintain distance from social media.

Some people take this as a way of staying away from people. That’s not what I’m saying - I’m talking only about the intermediary - social media, not the people on it. The intermediary has its own incentives, and a business to run.

The platform has a mind of its own

On most social media there are awards for interaction and awards for creating content. Both are structured in such a way as to …

Hello Reader,

Today I wanted to introduce you to one of my favourite artist teachers, James Gurney. I discovered him from his many videos on youtube, where he generously shares his skills and knowledge - James Gurney - YouTube. I like doing watercolour and James is a master of this medium, and that is how I discovered his channel and then later his blog at Gurney Journey

In this video he paints an aircraft from the lounge in the airport - the video shows his extraordinary skill. It’s less than 7 mins long, you should definitely watch it…

James Gurney has also …

Today I want to share one of my pen and ink drawings, done some time ago. It’s a village house at the edge of the woods. Sometimes we city folks who come from small towns and villages dream of returning to live in a tiny, isolated place.

Hope you like it. Have a great day, Bye!

-Abhishek (art noob)

Hello Reader,

Today I wanted to write a few words about a Mexican artist you might have heard of - Frida Kahlo. Frida was famous for her paintings with autobiographical elements. She used folk art techniques in painting.

Unfortunately I could not find any of her paintings in the public domain which can be shared without copyright issues.

Frida and her artwork are considered icons for the feminism and LGBTQ+ movements.

Frida had an Indian connection too - here she is in a saree (center) with Nayantara Sahgal (left) and Rita Dar at Casa Azul in 1947.

This online gallery has loads …

Hello Dear Reader,

A few years ago, we had visited Tanakpur in Uttarakhand for a family vacation. On one of the many long walks - I took this photo of a black drongo (a bird native to our region, with a distinctive long split black tail). It made a nice contrast to the warm greens and browns all around it in the tall trees. Almost looks like it is meditating.

Have a great day,

Abhishek (art noob)

Today I wanted to share with you the painting which inspired the name of the Impressionist movement. The painting is Impression, Sunrise by Claude Monet.

The painting depicts sunrise in the port of Monet’s hometown of La Havre.

You can read more about painting at its wiki page - Impression, Sunrise - Wikipedia.

May the force be with you,

Abhishek (art noob)

Hi Guys,

Utawaga Hiroshige, the Japanese Artist from the early 19th century, is one of my favourite artists of all time. His work has a serenity and unity which is hard to describe but easy to feel. His paintings were my desktop wallpaper for a long time. Even today I go looking for his paintings from time to time. Oh by the way, that is a measure of goodness of a visual artist - how many times the artist’s work compels you to look.

Hiroshige’s Wikipedia page has a decent collection of his woodcut works. I’m sharing one …

Hi Everyone,

In a trip to Trivandrum a few years ago, we had the good luck to visit the art museum called the Sri Chitra Art Gallery. The gallery was setup to house the works of Raja Ravi Varma and his Kilimanoor Royal family. The gallery is right next to the Zoo in Trivandrum and is well maintained. It houses some of Raja Ravi Varma’s best paintings. You can read more about the art gallery here - Sri Chitra Art Gallery, Thiruvananthapuram (keralaculture.org).

As soon as you enter the gallery you will see a larger than life painting named …