Shahul Art Gallery & Studio

About Shahul Art Gallery & Studio

I hail from the beautiful town of Palakkad in Kerala. I started painting at a tender age and instantly realized that I have a passion for it. My family is into farming and agriculture, and the idea of pursuing a profession in the field of arts was not convincing enough for them. However, as time passed, they accepted my line of work. I have not received any formal training in drawing and painting apart from a certification in Madras Government Technical Examination (MGTE). I commenced my career as an abstract artist and abstract still is one of my favourite styles, as I love the play of colors. Physical canvases possessed limitations of space and hence I moved over to murals, which gave me the leeway to explore the possibilities of large-format images. All my murals are over one feet high. Like any artist, colors are a crucial part of my work and, I carefully pick and choose the colors I use in every piece. I believe colors create a dialogue between the artist that I am, and the onlooker. I derive inspiration from everyday instances and like to portray them through my visual dimension. I want to bring about a sense of familiarity and nostalgia in my audience by keeping the themes simple, but at the same time add the personal artistic touch to it. Through my art, I want to capture the emotions of a moment I witnessed or experienced, and render them to the onlooker in a way that they are also able to savour the same. I do not limit myself to a particular genre; I try to etch on the canvas whatever plays on my mind at that ongoing moment. Having said that, I have evolved to realize that I do have a particular liking for sketching larger-than-life figurines. I believe art has varied effects on the onlooker and at some level, they find a connection with what they are exposed to. For some, it may be the color palette that draws a sense of resemblance, for some other, it may be the subject itself and there are some who perceive a totally different though parallel in my paintings. On several occasions, I have had people come up to me and share a perspective about my work, which even I had not observed. It feels fulfilling to realize that my art has touched people.