Ratish Sharma, Shimla
Member Since May 2011
Artist Statement Born in 1961 in Ghaziabad, a suburb of Delhi. Youngest son in a family of seven children. At age 5, was admitted to one of the best boarding schools in India in the Himalayas - Wynberg Allen School, Mussoorie, where studied for 12 years. The hostel warden was a huge (maybe 120 kgs) kind hearted chain smoking English lady with a booming voice and always wearing a long frock - Aunty Newton, whose husband was the senior school art teacher. He was in the habit of coming out of his small quarters into the dormitory after lights out, when the students had gone to sleep, and he would put on one tube light, keep the canvas leaning against the wall, sit down on the floor, and paint late into the night. The spot where he painted and kept his stuff was near the double decker steel bed where I slept on top bed, and I would quietly peep from under the quilt at what he was painting a few feet below. He seemed to greatly enjoy painting, softly whistling, thinking that none was looking at him. He painted something like what Francis Newton Souza paintings look like- strong assured strokes and bold colourful paintings. A real professional artist, intent on creating his own art in the middle of the night. He painted oil on canvas mostly, but sometimes also used technique of mixing egg in dry pigment, or he would stick thin long sticks of broom with fevicol on canvas in outline shapes of haunted houses and after it dried and properly stuck to canvas, he would paint over it to give stunning three dimensional effect. For three years, I watched him paint almost daily. He would keep visiting England/USA with his paintings during the long 3 1/2 months winter school vacations. After few years, the Newtons left India for good. Next art teacher was Mr.A.B.Mishra, a good art teacher, concentrating on getting the basics right. Ended up scoring 88% marks in the ISC XII board exams in art. Thereafter, no formal studies in fine art. Did further studies (graduation in science and post graduation) and other things to earn a comfortable living, and stay in hill station of Shimla with my wife and son; but have throughout also kept painting, at least on every Sunday to complete one painting a week, and have held exhibitions in Mumbai and Delhi. I follow my gurus - Mr.Newton and Mr.Mishra - just paint whatever I like, in the way I like, and not keep thinking of what anyone else may say about my art, since an artist essentially paints for himself his own feelings. My paintings are abstract, using bright colours with palette knife. As painting support, I prefer rough sanded gessoed thick Polycarbonate Sheet, as it is one of the most durable archival material (this is the same material that is used as bullet proof glass, cockpit of fighter planes, even CDs). I enjoy painting and you are welcome to have a peep into my personal world through this blog. Thanks.
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