Artline 8212; Chandigarh

Kanchan started painting at the tender age of ten, without a background in painting, with untrained fingers. Her keen observation of what...

Kanchan started painting at the tender age of ten, without a background in painting, with untrained fingers. Her keen observation of what was happening around, her interest in people, particularly women was her greatest asset. And she exercised it to the maximum. She would observe faces, their individual features, and then start drawing them. On her own, she started with making portraits of people. Her fascination for faces, expressions and depressions developed into copies being filled with pencil and pen drawings.

Portraiture was her first and foremost way of using her hand to let herself into the world of creativity and expression. Later she went on to doing landscapes.

While at school itself, Kanchan started making a name for herself. She started winning prizes at various art competitions. This led Kanchan to take on Fine Arts as a subject at the Government College for Girls in Sector 11. Kanchan did not even enroll at the college at Art, for she was told that it was impossible to get in there. But her love for art continued and she went on to do a post-graduate course in Fine Arts at the Government College of Art, Ludhiana.

After joining the post-graduate course at Ludhiana, Kanchan felt she was finally entering the world of painting. 8220;At the MA level she learnt how to compose and started making her own individual creations. With the study of portraiture, landscapes, history of art, still life drawings and compositions. Kanchan embarked on a new journey. She started becoming familiar with the works of western and Indian masters. Through the History of Art lessons she was initiated into the works of Degas, Manet, Van Gogh, Picasso, Amrita Shergill, the Bengal School, the different major art movements across the world. It was period of joyous learning, and of discovery.

During her post-graduate course she started giving vent to her own personal expression. She continued exploring the feminine form. Rural life, tradition and heritage of Punjab became her muse. Working continuously not only in class but also outside the classroom. Using crayons, oils, pencil and now with acrylics, Kanchan further developed her earlier themes of landscapes and portraits. She works with pencils, oils, water colors acrylics. 8220;I like the transparency of the water colors, though I8217;d like to work with acrylics since it is a quicker process.8221; Says Kanchan.

Her works are based on original ideas, she does not copy. She has a realistic essence in her paintings. Kanchan has been exploring the female form in her works. Culture and tradition can be seen in some of her paintings-ethnic backgrounds and bold colors, Indian village imagery, layering of colors and forms, the female seems to be predominant in all her works. Kanchan is working towards an exhibition which consists of 22 paintings. The entire collection centers around women and rural themes.

Women meditating, Rajasthani nomads, woman and child, village woman, woman working on pots, sunflowers, sorrow, horizons, a play of the folds of feminine drapery, exploration of rhythm and line.

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She is emerging as an artist through sheer love for the art and sheer perseverance to succeed as an artist. She belongs to that community of individuals who is lucky enough to know what she wants to do, and is moving towards her load star with all the enthusiasm and conviction of one who is young, and for whom the world is her oyster.