Close Up Interview with Visual Artist Aditi Chakravarty

I am a visual artist from India, Assam (North East Part of India). Our cultural traditions are as numerous and colourful as rich our nature. However, it is unfortunate that political unrest is very common and economic problems loom large all the time here.

I started off quite early even when I was just a child. My grandfather was also an artist. My father, a poet, who also practised painting as a hobbyist, went missing in 1994. He had a big friend circle that had quite a few visual artists. One of his close friends Mr. Neel Pawan Baruah (from Assam) is a great artist. As a child I was a very young student of his and later I did my Bachelor Degree in Visual Art in Print Making from Govt. College of Arts & Crafts. Since then I have been regular in my art activities. I displayed my works in numerous exhibitions, both national and international, participated in many workshops and seminars. I also worked as a designer for DC Handicrafts of India. I graduated (diploma from Pushpanjali Cultural Academy) in Bharatnatyam, which is an Indian classical dance form, under the guidance of Padmasree  Pushpin Bhuyan. Later I obtained the Visharad Degree too.

Nature inspires me to work.

Where do you get your inspiration from when you design/paint?

I joined Assam Fine Arts and Crafts Society in my childhood. That was a time I was a witness to the wondrous activities happening around and gradually I became a part of them. My society, my nature, my home all make me feel and love colours and mediums, and experiment with new techniques. My works get better with continuous practice.

Uninhibited comment is not something very usual in my society; people would never say to you straightway whether you are this or that, ‘good’ or ‘bad’! But I would love if they describe me with these five words – Hardworking, Honest, Straightforward, Positive and… any bad quality in me…ha ha ha

One day six famous contemporary artists of India visited my small place suddenly and viewed my works. They suggested that I should work well and advised me on many related matters. I will never forget that.

We have a very short lifespan to learn new things, but we have to spend a lot of time and energy on many routine jobs. We can’t compromise. Our space is too little for the vast subject. We have to time our creative endeavours carefully even as we struggle for a living. Nature is too vast for our observations. We observe maybe a few dots of this. If one wants to travel to observe nature and study it, even then human limitations still remain…resulting in some frustration, as you say.

always try to give more and more time to my practice. I always keep my material and canvas ready in my small studio. I visit art galleries regularly. If I fail to work for some reason I feel guilty. I wish to work, work and work till the end.

Can you please tell us about how you connect with other artists, and your customers (i.e. how do you network)?

Whenever our works are displayed, our works connect us with people, and some of them are collectors. Many new opportunities come or critics write about works, the works get media coverage, which people read. Some curators invite us for their projects. Sometimes collectors come to view our works. Our works are the means to connect us in this network of art lovers, collectors, galleries etc. Unfortunately, art market is yet to develop in our place. We are working very hard and waiting for a good time.

We should understand our own mind. What is my need and why and how I started to love visual art? How visually did I react? How do I observe my society and Nature to learn and create new space? These may be a few questions to ask oneself. Follow nature, never follow works created by other artists. Once you start copying that will surely block your vision and imagination. I see it that way.

We are from very lately developed place of this country. Therefore, we are still into many basic things here. I have a dream to start a fully equipped Cultural Centre, complete with a Studio, residency, gallery and a museum here, where artists from even distant places can come, stay and work…We have unparalleled beauty of space but we need financial assistance of course!

It gives me pleasure when my art works touch the viewers’ minds.

I have a long list because they make my life colourful and I’ve learned a lot from them. They all are great.

Always believe in practical things. Have trust in your own capacity; as every individual is unique.

Now I am reading a book on analysis of simple folk tales. It is very interesting. It’s about how people are connected with nature and family, how children develop certain common traits etc. It is a book with a very lucid narrative by Dilip Phukan, an Assamese writer.

I am not the right person to recommend a book for others because I’ve read a very few books.

http://www.galleryartpositive.com/exhibitions_artist_detail.php?id=280&pid=980&exid=31

http://www.emergingartists.in/work_display.php?Cat=Paintings&ArtId=31&MType=&TType=&SType=&Formatt=&PType=&aid=&RecAdd=&Details=&CChoice=

http://www.kingschest.com/products-info.php?proID=1413&cidp=&SuperID=&level=

http://news.priyo.com/art/2011/05/26/ishan-baibhab-affluence-north-27197.html