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Every hour of every day, I’m learning more
The more I learn, the less I know about before
The less I know, the more I want to look around…..

Lyrics from one of my favourite bands – UB40 (higher ground).

I could never ever draw as a child and i always believed i was terrible at anything creative. Even the annual attempts to make rangolis for Diwali was barely a tad over disaster. Neighbours and family members politely smiled and quickly looked away to spare me from the criticism 🙂 🙂

When the kids started school i couldnt get away from the school projects – book dress up day, the 100th day of school, thrass chart day, math day, creative day and it went on.. I could not get away with not trying to match up with other mummies and atleast do something else other than buy something from the costume shop everytime.. That’s when i discovered pinterest! The multitude of ideas and diy’s that is online was mindblowing. And slowly i started – with small craft projects for school, diy costumes for the kids, return gifts for the birthday parties, decoupage personalized wedding gifts for friends. The 1st step is always the hardest, but once you are on the path walking ahead is easier.

I enrolled for painting lessons while we were in Singapore. My amazing art teacher introduced me to intricacies of Kerala mural painting. While i have always been in awe of this art form(I have family who painted the temple walls of Guruvayoor and Mamiyoor in Kerala) i did not know the basics. So slowly and steadily my art knowledge and art supplies kept growing. After relocating to Abu Dhabi i did not have a job and with free time in my hand, started exploring painting some more. Youtube tutorials of ArtSherpa and Angela Anderson were my first steps to understand the basics of painting. I chose acrylics as that was the medium i was first introduced to and continue with the same. And its not about the painting techniques, i am learning about myself too in this journey – how i get irritable and impatient after a certain point and that’s when mistakes happen, how at times its best to take a break and look at your painting from a distance, not too be too self-critical of yourself, reminding yourself that your still a beginner and still learning so any progress is good progress !

These below are inspired from ArtSherpa’s tutorials – AcrylicApril20 challenge.

I continue to learn and discover more… I will also attempt to journal my mistakes, what tutorials helped me the most and other details.

–

Sunita.