After my NDE and OBE, my <strong>art</strong>istic creations changed dramatically. While Nature cont<strong>in</strong>ues to be a major source of <strong>in</strong>spiration, my <strong>art</strong>work embodies the mystical experiences of be<strong>in</strong>g cocooned <strong>in</strong> a warm embrace of magnificent div<strong>in</strong>e white light that showed me unconditional love, eternal peace and of be<strong>in</strong>g a p<strong>art</strong> of full and united consciousness. Post NDE/OBE, when I create, I am always <strong>in</strong> a meditative trance, stepp<strong>in</strong>g away and allow<strong>in</strong>g life-force energy to create. As an <strong>in</strong>tuitive <strong>art</strong>ist, my <strong>art</strong>work emerges from a no-m<strong>in</strong>d state. Noted by several critics, my colors and flow have changed significantly. While much of my work <strong>in</strong>volves spiritual life coach<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>tuitive energy heal<strong>in</strong>g, and meditation coach<strong>in</strong>g, I have comb<strong>in</strong>ed this work with <strong>art</strong>, often comb<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g the two. Many clients and audiences have found this useful and therapeutic. How did you f<strong>in</strong>d the medium that best worked for you? What was that process of discovery like? My <strong>art</strong>istic journey has <strong>in</strong>volved experiment<strong>in</strong>g and explor<strong>in</strong>g a variety of mediums such as acrylics, encaustics, pastels, alcohol <strong>in</strong>ks, marbl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>ks, silk dyes, pen and <strong>in</strong>k, charcoal, pencil sketches and mixed media. My process of discovery <strong>in</strong>cludes play<strong>in</strong>g with each medium much like a child, and really connect<strong>in</strong>g to it viscerally. Each medium must connect to my <strong>in</strong>ner soul as though it is an extension of my be<strong>in</strong>g. Because my work is non-representational, the <strong>art</strong> has its own unique he<strong>art</strong> and soul; there is no realistic frame of reference. To create textures, I typically do not use a pa<strong>in</strong>t brush. I use non-traditional tools such as plastic forks, chunks of metal, or, sometimes I simply squeeze pa<strong>in</strong>t from a tube and smear it with my f<strong>in</strong>gers. The <strong>art</strong>work transpires from swift and sweep<strong>in</strong>g movements that <strong>in</strong>corporate heightened colors and <strong>in</strong>tense textures to communicate—much like a classical dancer. While each medium has its own uniqueness, <strong>in</strong> the recent years, I have developed a close aff<strong>in</strong>ity toward encaustics. I f<strong>in</strong>d this medium to be highly <strong>in</strong>tuitive and it works well with my tendency to create work from a “no-m<strong>in</strong>d” state. The creations take on a life of their own. The pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g communicates when it needs more love and attention. Sometimes I don’t even know how a pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g came to be—it’s like someth<strong>in</strong>g deeper than my consciousness br<strong>in</strong>gs it to life. In my current show, Into the Light, you see acrylic, alcohol <strong>in</strong>ks, and encaustic pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs, mixed media jewelry, batik and hand dyed scarves. What were some of your early <strong>in</strong>fluences to pursue the <strong>art</strong>s? Did you always want to be an <strong>art</strong>ist when you were a child? I was blessed to be surrounded by <strong>art</strong> dur<strong>in</strong>g my early childhood years. A paternal uncle was a f<strong>in</strong>e <strong>art</strong>ist who was one of the pioneers to get <strong>in</strong>to modern <strong>art</strong> dur<strong>in</strong>g his time <strong>in</strong> the 1940s. I spent many hours watch<strong>in</strong>g him pa<strong>in</strong>t <strong>in</strong> his studio as he used bold colors and pa<strong>in</strong>ted figurative <strong>art</strong> depict<strong>in</strong>g scenes from Indian Mythology. While I do not use figures <strong>in</strong> my <strong>art</strong>. I often wonder whether the bold colors may be rem<strong>in</strong>iscent of his creations. Other <strong>in</strong>fluencers were Jehangir Sabavala, a 20th century Indian modern <strong>art</strong>ist who created geometric horizontal shapes with pa<strong>in</strong>t <strong>in</strong>to cityscapes and figures. Other <strong>in</strong>fluencers were Ram Kumar Verma, another <strong>art</strong>ist from the 20th century, who had moved away from figurative <strong>art</strong> to exclusively create abstract <strong>art</strong> and M. F Hussa<strong>in</strong>, another well-known <strong>art</strong>ist from the 20th century known for his bold and colorful pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>in</strong> the cubist style. I had many supportive mentors who noticed my uncanny ability to draw and pa<strong>in</strong>t and a flair for colors and encouraged me to pursue <strong>art</strong> as a profession. Dur<strong>in</strong>g my early school years, my mother nurtured my draw<strong>in</strong>g skills by show<strong>in</strong>g me how to create diagrams for biology, my middle-school <strong>art</strong> teacher who observed my uncanny ability to work with colors and elevated my <strong>art</strong> skills and my father who took me to galleries and museums on weekends to appreciate <strong>art</strong> by renowned masters. Needless to say, I was an <strong>art</strong>ist at he<strong>art</strong> and knew that this would be my long term profession. Outside of your <strong>art</strong>—what feeds your imag<strong>in</strong>ation and br<strong>in</strong>gs you joy? Nurtur<strong>in</strong>g plants and children br<strong>in</strong>gs me joy. Sunset and sunrise br<strong>in</strong>g me joy. Be<strong>in</strong>g amidst dense green woods and gardens br<strong>in</strong>g me joy. As an Intuitive Energy Healer, Meditation Coach and a Spiritual Life Coach, I work <strong>in</strong> a creative space. Work<strong>in</strong>g with clients to help shed unwanted dense negative energies to transmute them <strong>in</strong>to positive energies that flow whilst br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> good health, balance, and abundance br<strong>in</strong>gs me tremendous joy. What creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet? While I have explored pottery many years ago, I am excited about work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> this area. 8 | Art Locally
Art Locally | 9