It all started a year ago when a friend of mine attended a week-long Warli art workshop conducted by Catterfly and shared her experience. Being inquisitive by nature, I tried to explore more and came across another friend who shared her experience of monthly workshops. That is when I realized that I could get introduced to various art forms in one month! And voila! That started my beautiful journey into the magical world of exploring not only our native art forms but also contemporary ones.

Having stopped painting almost 10 years ago, I was a bit hesitant on how I would manage. I realized that all the sessions were designed in such a way that you would start your day with an easy module. As the day progressed, the task would get more and more challenging. 

Though the first week was tough with the pandemic going on and lots of work at home, by the second week it all started becoming manageable and I started loving my busy schedule! Moreover, my kids were happy since Mummy was busy and they started reminding me about my classes like how I do for them :-). That month not only helped in igniting the artist inside me but also made me realize that learning any kind of art form is so therapeutic!

I learnt a lot and here are a few of my takeaways from this journey so far:

 # Warli sessions taught me that being simple is beautiful.

 

# Gond sessions taught me how to not limit myself.

# Madhubani sessions taught me that shape is not important but how you carry yourself is.

 

#Contemporary sessions taught me how to be experimental in life.

#Pattachitra sessions taught me how to deal with intricacies of life.

#Pichhwai sessions taught me how to be modern and yet keep the culture intact.

#Kerala mural sessions taught me that life is not always a straight line and it has its curves and bends. 

#Engraving technique on palm leaf taught me that in order to create your imprint on something/someone you need to work hard.

#Phad session taught me how we learn from each other.

#Water color taught me to handle the life smoothly and go with the flow.

#Acrylic color taught me how I can repaint and correct my mistakes in life and blend with the original.

#Knife painting The use of brush as base and strokes of knife over it reminds me of the smooth and rough patches of life.

All the artists were so humble, grounded and eager to solve our queries. I learned how to remain positive in life from them, and also realised that by using natural colors they are protecting our environment. In spite of facing so many challenges in life, they were so accommodating. and cooperative. I salute them and thank them in keeping our rich culture alive and also Catterfly Art and Culture for finding such gems and connecting them with art lovers like us. My best wishes to all of them. 

You might wonder why and how I have learned so many life lessons from my art journey. Then do join and explore yourself. Believe me you will stop complaining about  life. :-)