about my work
Painting expresses my understanding and appreciation of different aspects of the spiritual life and the spiritual journey. The arts and spiritual practice awaken in me the symbolic world which in turn allows the value and meaning of my everyday life and interactions to be lived. The desire to paint stems from a desire to connect with and to share this meaning and value.
the process
The immediacy of colour as well as the qualities and textures of materials evoke my imagination which in turn gives birth to the themes in my work. An attitude of openness during the act of painting is significant to me in that it is from this basis that a dynamic and healthy relationship can develop between oneself and the work (as an artist or viewer) and at which point the separation between artist and viewer and work become lessened. As Stephen Nachmanovitch has said 'The noun of self becomes a verb'. And he goes on to say, 'This flashpoint of creation in the present moment is where work and play merge'. So, the notion of our self becomes less fixed and one enters as T.S Eliot would say 'the dance...for there is only the dance'. (T.S Eliot 'Four Quartets')
drawing
Drawing has been an essential component to my painting practice since completing my studies at the Prince of Wales's drawing School in 2003. During this period I was introduced to methods of studying great artists work. Through this practice I gained a more direct understanding of specific artist's visual language including Hildegard of Bingen, Titian, Poussin, Cezanne, Matisse and Picasso as well as the collection of Indian miniatures at the V&A Gallery.
Drawing helps me to work through my ideas swiftly and fluidly on the page and is particularly helpful when I am working on a larger painting and I want to explore the feeling, composition or colour possibilities of the final image trough a variety of different ways.
content
I draw inspiration from a wide pool of contemporary and historic sources, but most particularly from symbols of ancient European myth and culture such as the labyrinthe, spiral, Sheela-na gig, the stag, sun and moon symbolism and world tree as well as the rich symbolism of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist art. I am inspired by progress in the digital arts, sculpture, film, and painting. Artists of interest include: Chris Ofili, Francesco Clemente, Raqib Shaw, Christopher le Brun, Theresa Oulton, Paul Gopal Chowdury, Mary Newcombe, Cecil Collins, Norman Adams, Paul Klee, Robert Rauschenberg, Paul Nash, Georges Roualt, Antoni Tapies...
I am a painter trained to MA level and am currently living and working as an artist in London. I am a fully ordained Buddhist and practice within the context of the Western Buddhist Order.
You can contact me at connect@amitajyoti.net