Monday, June 27, 2011

The Silent Sentinel

Thank you very much Blogadda!!!
I really appreciate it:)))

The Silent Sentinel - Painting on glass tile, 5*5 inches

The Silent Sentinel

Tossing in the turbulence
We tried to forge forth
And meet our loved ones
The kisses had become lashes
Our eyes blinded by foam & darkness
Our lives dangled on knife’s edge
Hearts prayed and chants uttered
But nothing helped us and our soul fluttered
Voices cried and raved
Merging with the waves and the tempest that swayed

“Captain, Are we lost?”  squeaked Tony
“No son, Lord is there to guide us”
Said our Captain with a heart that was heavy.

What was that???
A gleam of light went past his vision
Lord, O saviour – Was hat a sign?
Cried our Captain “This way!”
Every eye turned towards the light
There arose the silent sentinel
That has paved way for many a lost soul
Again, it has done it’s duty
I wonder, how many are grateful to
That sentinel which directs us…?

This is a poem I wrote when I was in college(I was 19 or so). I was rummaging thru my stuff when I came across this poem in one of my old diaries and I thought this would go well with my new glass painting. It's not perfect still I love it:-)

I was wondering about my sentiments at  that point of time. Do we change as years pass by? Does our basic nature remain the same? I keep assessing & evaluating myself time & again. 

This weekend I am engaged in one of the commission works.

Sketch of a commission work (9*12 inches) for one of my friends who wants it to gift it to her daughter's teacher.

I am linking this post to Colours Dekor's Weekend Wrap Up 37.

Coming Soon: An exclusive chat with one of the extremely talented illustrators of Bloggyland

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Madhubani for Kids - DIY

Hello Friends


I am back with the promised tutorial. This post is also off to the Artsy Craftsy Challenge - Folk Craft in Shruti's blog, Mindful Meanderings. I am also linking it to Weekend Wrap Up 36 at Colours Dekor


We, Lil A (my lil assistant) & I, had a really good time making this. She was all ready for help...in fact she wanted to do it completely on her own:)


What I have done here is decor magnet for kids based on the artform, Madhubani . It is a folk art practised in the Mithila region of Bihar in India.



What you need:

Plastic sheet
Cardstock (colour of your choice)
A sketch (I have drawn a Madhubani sketch here. It's a folk art of Bihar, India)
Scissors
Glass Paints
Brush
Magnet
Glue

So, are you ready???
Get, Set.......GO!  







Now the Madhubani magnet is ready for decoration. Thanks to my lil assistant. Isn't it pretty interesting??? You can decorate it on fridge, lamp shades, clocks anywhere that you like provided it's a metal:))





That's not all...you can choose your own patterns, make some and even gift it to your family and friends.



Check out Shruti's blog for more of the Artsy Craftsy Challenge:




Madhubani painting comes from the Indian villages of Madhubani and Mithila in Bihar. Madhubani literally means ‘Forest of Honey’. There are paintings for each occasion and festival such as birth, marriage, holi, surya shasti, kali puja, Upanayanam (sacred thread ceremony), and durga puja. These paintings are done on various mediums such as cloth, handmade paper and canvas. The main themes of Madhubani paintings contain images of Hindu deities such as Radha, Krishna, Ram, Shiva, Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati. Also you will be able to find beautiful Madhubani paintings of sun, moon and tulsi or the sacred basil plant revered very much by the Hindus. The themes of daily activities, nature, flora and fauna and Hindu Gods are the most prominent. They are characterized by the vibrant and bold use of colours and traditional geometric patterns that supports the main theme. Madhubani painting has been done traditionally by the women of villages.

Hues n Shades' very own Decor magnets :)




Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Acrylics, Glass, Magnets & Keychains...


Any guess at what these are???
Yes, They are decor magnets and keychains.
I found out this method of making decorative magnets some 7 years back. They are sheets on which I painted with glass, covered it with card stock and glued a magnet. I will include a tutorial very soon for all my friends here.  It's a very simple tutorial too.

Same method I apply for making bookmarks as well (without magnets glued:)).
These are Eygptian & classic bookmarks.


A closer view....

I am totally on top of the world this week coz I displayed my artworks at ARTE Souq last Friday and four of my paintings sold along with few bookmarks. I am ecstatic!!! I had a really superb neighbour, Sonal Bharjatya from Studio Saubhagya. She's a fabulous fabric jewellery designer passed out from the prestigious NIFT. Her designs are amazing. You can check out the link to see her wonderful creations.

My sold artworks...
(Can you see my tag in the collage above? That goes with all my artworks)

Mayilpeeli (peacock feather)- acrylic painting

Ammayum njanum (Mom & I) - acrylic painting

Foliage -glass painting

Amaryllis - glass painting

I was also lucky as two journalists recorded my profile along with few others to upload it in their website that describes Dubai to tourists. They said they'll send the link once that is done.
Lil A was all elated running around and marketing for her mom in a really modest way:)

It has been a pretty exciting week:)))
Hope your weekend went well...
I am linking it up to Colours Decor Weekend Wrap up 35

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Progression of a Tree

Today morning, I came across a Jewish folktale from India and I felt that this artwork is so apt for this tale. You may read the story of the golden tree here. It's a sweet little tale.  I bet I had heard a similar story minus the golden tree in my kiddo years.

Here's a simple tutorial on the creation of a
Golden Tree (Bamboo Wall Hanging)

What you need:
Handmade paper (it is heavenly...I simply love it!!!)
Golden leaves
Acrylic colours
Brushes (I have used No:6 [flat] , No: 4 &1[round])
Glue
Bamboo wall mat

Basic sketch of a tree. I just placed few gold leaves for quick glance on how it would look.

Satisfied, I began the basic colouring

Completed the shading...added some grass and the background hue

A closer look; don't you think the impressed leaves give it a gorgeous look?

Glue the gold leaves onto the branches.

The whole tree...
I loved the deckle-edges that were on two sides of the paper and
so I manually gave the look on the other two sides.
 I wanted it that way.
Now glue it onto the bamboo wall mat. Let it dry for a few hours.

Viola! The bamboo wall hanging is ready to be hung!

If you are 'adventurous' and would like to try your hand at homemade paper, visit Julie who is too good at it.
You could also visit here for a neat and easy video which Julie shared with us:)

Hope you enjoyed it my dear friends:))