IBDP VISUAL ARTS EXHIBITION 2024 Report

SUNSET ON AMALFI May 2023 Medium: Oil Paints with Palette Knife on Canvas Size: 18 X 24 In.

I was motivated to craft this piece after my recent trip to Italy, fulfilling my dream of visiting the breathtaking Amalfi Coast. Inspired by the charm of this place, I aimed to capture it in an impressionist style using oil paints and a palette knife to evoke its essence. The choppy and textured feel achieved with the palette knife mirrored the unique character of the coast's houses and cliffs, enhancing the desired effect. The lighting I added, in the end, created greater dimension and depth to the landscape, and I found that it perfectly captured the isolated yet lively feeling that I experienced at Positano, Amalfi. Overall, I am happy with the outcome, especially because I successfully brought to life the atmosphere and ambiance that Amalfi Coast held.

A CAPPADOCIAN SUNRISE May 2023 Medium: Mix media Oil pastel and Acrylic on Canvas Size: 20 X 24 In.

The piece presents an abstract portrayal of the Cappadocia landscape as seen by me during an early morning hot air balloon ride. The experience of that trip holds a special place in my heart, compelling me to capture it within this artwork. I began by crumpling the plastic covering the canvas came in and dipping it into a mix of a neutral shade of acrylic paint with water. After wrapping it around the canvas, I let it dry for two days. This method aimed to create a rocky mountain-like texture reminiscent of the landscapes in Cappadocia. Subsequently, I used oil pastels to imbue the entire piece with a surrealistic fine art appearance, aiming to instill a dreamy look and feel to the artwork.

MINI MAHARAJA November 2023 Medium: Acrylic on Canvas Size: 24 X 24 In.

Through this painting, I wanted to emphasize my Indian roots, and how strongly aligned I am with Indian culture and took up the classic centuries-old miniature painting style for this artwork, in a modern-day setting with me as the subject. Even though I was working on a relatively smaller canvas space, the intricacy alone led to this work being one of the most time-consuming ones. This was also the first time I would experiment with flashy gold and silver colored pens and paints.
Stylizing and planning my portrait in the artwork that would look like me but also align with the principles of miniature painting was something I found challenging but ultimately, I'm happy with the outcome, although I don't feel a digital image does this piece justice…

SUNSET ON QUEEN’S NECKLACE September2022 Medium: Collage on Sunboard Size: 21 X 30 In.

This was the first artwork of my Mumbai landscape series, inspired by various places in my city and based on a picture I took of the Queen's Necklace (also known as Marine Drive) coastal view from my favorite seafood restaurant.
The clouds held a certain aura of dominance that served as an inspiring catalyst for me to embark on an abstract art project centered entirely around them. To do this, I decided to take up collage as a medium, mixing and matching colors from magazine articles. Finding the right shades was cumbersome at times, but in the end, I like how I tested my application and used a large yet limited selection of shades for my artwork in the right way.

QUIET July 2022 Medium: Acrylic on Canvas Size: 18 X 24 In.

This particular artwork is exactly what Mark Rothko would make if he got into landscape painting. In this painting, I wanted not only to create an artwork of mountains but also to capture the overall feel of the environment, showcasing the way light travels around structures by depicting areas of light and shadow. For this particular work, by the time it was finished, I felt that it looked a bit empty and dull. However, being my first IB artwork, I was content with the outcome of "low effort, maximum result" because it truly showed how even a minimalist artwork has the potential to be simple yet stunning. I also really like the surreal effect it has due to the magenta mountains against a black background. I appreciate the peaceful, desolate, and misty feeling that comes with this artwork.

INSOMNIAC CITY June 2023 Medium: Acrylic on Canvas Size: 18 X 24 In.

This artwork is the second piece in my Mumbai landscape series. The painting turned out to be a mix of realism and impressionism, and I love the effect it's creating. There was a great exploration of perspective depth and shades done with this piece, with great attention to detail. I also see hints of Vinci's sfumato technique. There were times while painting that I considered not even adding lights to the buildings because I was loving the strong, mysterious, misty feel the city was bringing to itself in the absence of lights. Ultimately, I liked the effect the lighting created as well because I don't think I would've really been able to capture the busyness of the city without it.

EN ROUTE August 2023 Medium: Tape on Sunboard Size: 21 X 30 In.

This is the third and final artwork in my Mumbai landscape series and was done with a medium that showed me the true meaning of “creativity comes from the most unexpected places” - tape! The landscape is a signal that I always get stuck at on the way to my art class and at this point, definitely deserved an artwork dedicated to it. I tried to take full advantage of the medium here, and by sticking the tape onto itself and then ripping it apart was able to get the choppy uneven patterns that went with the buildings and tree leaves so well. also had to mix and match shades to create those that weren't available in the market.

WHY March 2023 Medium: Mixed Media Size: 15.5 X 24 In.

Because how is never as important as why.
This exaggerated self-portrait was inspired by Egon Schiele's own self-portrait. I too, wanted to explore such themes of inner turmoil and vulnerability through my self- portrait and took up the emotion of frustration, which I think channeled the bold lines and intense colors of Schiele's work much better than any other emotion would. It also followed a similar color scheme which appealed to me. To create the rough bold scratchy texture I used oil pastels on paper, and later to emphasize the frustration aspect of this work, experimented with the background of the portrait, creating a better atmosphere for the same.

WHY March 2023 Medium: Mixed Media Size: 15.5 X 24 In.

Because how is never as important as why.
This exaggerated self-portrait was inspired by Egon Schiele's own self-portrait. I too, wanted to explore such themes of inner turmoil and vulnerability through my self- portrait and took up the emotion of frustration, which I think channeled the bold lines and intense colors of Schiele's work much better than any other emotion would. It also followed a similar color scheme which appealed to me. To create the rough bold scratchy texture I used oil pastels on paper, and later to emphasize the frustration aspect of this work, experimented with the background of the portrait, creating a better atmosphere for the same.

NATURES ESSENCE October 2023 Medium: Acrylic on Canvas Size: 60cm X 45cm

This artwork was one in which I wanted to deviate from my pattern of producing highly detailed and dense artworks to something extremely simple and minimal. These 12 frames represent the whole of nature in its essence, with simple symbols for each element. The most challenging aspect of this work was actually finding a way to minimize and simplify all of natures elements into a universal symbol.

UNTAMED November 2023 Medium: Foam paper and sunboard sculpture Size: 20 X 20 X 24 Inches

Nature isn’t always kind. It is unpredictable, wild, untamed even. When we think of nature, we imagine a calm pristine, evergreen tree. In my foam paper artwork, I wanted to break out of this stereotypical imagination and created this amalgamation of a tree.

UNTAMED December 2023 Medium: Mirror paper Size: Not Applicable

Everything we see around us, in nature, can be broken down into basic shaped. This on site installation was inspired by this very idea, and aims to present it in a 3d format. The reason for going with mirror paper in this work was to give a more elusive effect, and made the objects look all the more suspended in the air, This artwork definitely evokes a sense of wonder within its viewers.