Bull Dozing.

Not having access to the internet/ television / telephone these last few days (peaceful and painful at once!) gave me an opportunity to reflect upon several memories. Often, it felt as if days stretched on endlessly and time stood still. Made me reminisce about an incident in Ahmedabad, India when I battled insane traffic to reach an art exhibition only to be stopped by a lazy herd of cows who had decided to settle down in the middle of the street for their afternoon siesta. No amount of cajoling would tempt the holy animals away from their space and everything around came to a grinding halt. Once again, time stood still. How many cows can you spot hidden in this herd?

Sushi overdose!

Below is an illustration of what I feel like right now. A fat cat seriously overdosed on sushi!:) Without cable tv or the Internet set up at our new place, todays post is my first 'instagram-ed' mobile update!

Pattern Play

Today's art is a small experiment in "Color Interaction" where the forms seen below become visible through visual play.  (View http://perceptualstuff.org/colorinteractions.html for more information.)  They have been created painstakingly using the same pattern of the base paper to create a new form. On closer inspection, you will realize the background color has not been tampered with. The red, blue and green color of the paper appear more vivid in parts due to their interaction with the fine black ink. As I was creating this artwork, I was reminded of Michelangelo's famous quote "Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it. " I guess the turtle, fish and bird were always hidden in these wonderful Japanese Origami sheets. All it took was one .005 micron pen to make them all emerge one sunny afternoon :)

Morning!

Every night I go to bed very late and I realize in the morning that it was a bad idea. I think I'd like mornings better if they started later!:)

Hiss-tory!:)

A friend named Ayan Ghosh (check out his amazing photography on http://ayan82.carbonmade.com/ ) who is from Bengal in East India recently shared some very interesting snake history. Manasa or the Hindu Goddess of snakes is apparently followed with great devotion as a tribal Goddess popular in the dense mangroves of the Bengal Delta. She is worshiped for protection from and cure of snake bites mainly in the monsoons when snakes emerge from their lair. Every August, a festival named Jhapan, in this region, allows snake charmers from around India to assemble and Manasa is worshiped according to an age old tradition. Today's illustration is of a lazy, curious snake soaking in some summer and cooling off in a neighboring river. The explorations below are a play with positive and negative space. It's quite remarkable that a little play with space can create an entirely new kind of visual dynamism.

Ever noticed...

...that the one room to turn a house into a home is always the kitchen?:)

The sound of music.

Precisely five days from now (hopefully less!) , I presume that the first object my husband and i will unpack from the multitude of boxes would be his guitar. Despite having to compete for his attention over the incessant strumming, I never realized just how much I miss the sound of music floating through our home. This post is a reminder to myself to embrace and in fact enjoy a lil musical competition:) Looking forward to having him happily re-united with his prized possession.

Intreesting treedbits.

Do not be afraid to go out on a limb ... That's where the fruit is(Anonymous)

Last night while randomly browsing the internet, I came across some proverbs from different countries about trees. Proverbs play many roles in society. The first, possibly, most common role that a proverb plays is to educate and give advice (in an obscure way). Below is a compilation of some of my favorites. Which one do you like best?

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago.  The next best time is now. -  Chinese Proverb

A tree never hits an automobile except in self defense. - American Proverb

"A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in." -  Greek Proverb

"Around a flowering tree, one finds many insects." -  Proverb from Guinea

"A tree falls the way it leans." -  Bulgarian Proverb

"A tree does not move unless there is wind." -  Afghan Proverb

"A tree is known by its fruit." -  Zulu Proverb

"Great trees give more shade than fruit." - German Proverb

Umbrellas and Sailboats.

Visual puzzles are an endless source of fascination. It is exciting (and often challenging) to see how one form can create an entirely different impact and tell a new story. Which one do you prefer?

House hunting chronicles.

Having spent the greater part of this month searching for a house, it isn't any surprise that this artwork is composed of homes galore. House hunting is several things at once- exciting & hopeful, frustrating, often terribly disappointing and without a doubt e.x.h.a.u.s.t.i.n.g! Today's illustration is of a block of brownstone apartments filled with character and charm that we finally settled upon (after repeated visits and incessant argument and debate!:) Looking forward to setting up our new space and everything June brings!

Food chain of thought!

I've lately been obsessed with the food we eat and where it comes from. Maybe it springs from a little voice in my head urging me to try to become a full-fledged vegetarian. I remember reading an interesting theory of evolution some years ago. There is apparently a school of thought that subscribes to the belief that Man's downfall began with his becoming a settler and an agriculturalist. As long as Man was a scavenger and later a hunter-gatherer, he was still a participant in the natural order of the world. His foray into farming, however, is considered Man's first conscious act of viewing himself as separate from the rest of nature and attempting to manipulate it for his own gain. With all these thoughts in my head, today's illustration is of a four step food chain (Cat-owl-worm-plant). The concept of food chains is fascinating to me and this could just be the first of a series of several more!.. Lion- bison- deer- grass or maybe Fox- squirrel, bird, worm!

What would you like to see illustrated?:)

Spring has sprung!

I'm pretty stoked about the fact that despite living in several cold and hot countries over the years , this is the first time I'm living in a place which has all the four seasons! Mark Twain is quoted to have said  "In the spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours" ! These spring postcards are my homage to the fickle and restless beauty of spring. Sunny one moment and cloudy the very next, its everything all at once. It's a terrific time for some change, isn't it?:)

Wake up and smell the "kaapi!"

Growing up in South India, one of my strongest memories as a child was waking up every morning to the fresh delicious aroma of strong coffee ("kaapi") brewed from dark roasted coffee beans, hand poured and topped with an incredibly smooth foam. I'm astonished even today by how one whiff of coffee always instantly transports me to another world. Do you have any similar memories of a smell that takes you back in time?

Fishy Tales

Recently, I've been engrossed in this new book titled "Following Fish" by author Samanth Subramanian.More on http://samanth.in/blog/so-whats-the-book-about/ It's an awesome debut novel- anecdotal, humorous, wonderfully descriptive and blessed with the ability to make me more ravenous (literally!) with every page. Naturally, with this book still so fresh in my mind this could not be an illustration of anything else, could it?!;)

Oh Deer!

Starting today, I'm planning to reopen a little project I started some weeks ago making a series of posters for my niece's new room. Yes- Spring appears to be moving season for everyone!:) This deer is one of many animals that I've been working on. Name suggestions, anyone?