Chanda hai tu mera sooraj hai tu

Last night was magical.

I had slept for two hours in the morning after sending Tanay off to school. I don't know why, but I was feeling very heavy and tired. So, I just dozed off and I was sure that in the night, I would count the stars or count the numbers backward from 1000 to 1. But when I turned off the lights and took my blanket to sleep, I started thinking about the different paintings which I did over the past 5 days. I realized there were so many things I could depict on that white canvas. Landscapes, still life, birds, animals and what not? Different hues and colors and combinations, the sky is really the limit. And I didn't realize when I dozed off and went to sleep. It was really magical for me because in all these years I hadn't slept so easily at night after sleeping during the day for so long.

What magic can painting, coloring really do? This is just the beginning, I think!

Today, while going through my stock of stationery like color pencils, crayons, etc., I realized that I had oil pastel colors also, bought some years ago for Tanay at school in Bangalore and I had brought them to Karlsruhe. I had never used them. And then my quest started for easy paintings with oil pastels and found many interesting ones. T was also interested in seeing a few of them on YouTube. He offered to help me in making one painting with oil pastels and he really did a good job. He wanted to paint the sun in green, it will look cool, he said, but then he settled on red.

Check out our joint efforts here

It surely is going to be a nice journey ahead with T by my side. I hope he develops interest in this wonderful form of art and finds joy in it!

Nadiya ke paar

As I have already declared in my earlier posts, I am crazy about Sun and anything that has to do with the sun. I wanted to paint a sunset and water, which is also my favorite combination. The evening sky with the hues of orange, red and yellow! I randomly selected one google image and painted it according to my might.

The birds flying home and the fishermen going home create a nostalgic atmosphere and they look forward to seeing their loved ones after a tiring and grueling day. The feeling that someone is waiting at home is so reassuring and comforting!

The monk who sold his ferrari

Have you read the above book? It's a wonderful story of a rich man who became a monk and became richer by giving up material possessions and attaining peace. There is a wall-hanging picture of monks on the wall of my house, here in Karlsruhe. I am always intrigued by the peace that envelops that picture. I tried to recreate something similar with chalk pastels, but because I am not good at drawing lines and faces, it isn't as effective as the original one. But nevertheless, I tried!

They are facing towards the opposite side, so their emotions and facial expressions are hidden from the public. They must be meditating. They lead such a disciplined and austere life.

One such monk who fascinates me with his simple fundas is Gopal Gaur Das. He is a motivational speaker and a follower of the Hare Krisha Mission.

Check out his YouTube channel here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCz22l7kbce-uFJAoaZqxD1A

Star-lit sky

Browsing through a few more pictures for beginners, I came across this very captivating and fascinating picture of a woman staring at the star-lit sky and watching it with stupor and delight. She is alone but strong. She knows where she is, what she is! She vows to soar high up in the skies and not get bogged down by problems around her. She makes a wish by looking at the shooting star. She thinks the sky is the limit now!

The son's creations

When I am doing something with colors and chalks, how can the dear son be left behind?

He sat down for half an hour and made these 4 masterpieces.

1. The first image, the stand-alone image is the underwater world. His and my favorite!

2. First on the left of the three images - It's a moon in the space

3. Space rocket flying high

4. Halloween masked man

He wanted to do some more, but I told him to leave something for the next weekend. All the sheets need not be finished in 1 sitting.

So let's see what he makes next week.

The three emotions

After the sun and the hummingbird, I decided to try something on my own. Something that depicted me, my state of mind. What could it be?

I depicted the ground, the earth here, which keeps one grounded.

And the sky, when one wants to soar up high in the skies. And be worry-free, tension free and just be!

And the water which is neither the sky nor the ground and which teaches us to flow along with the current of life and see where it takes us. Some swim against it and some swim with it.

My favorite blue and aquamarine life! A perfect combination

The Hummingbird

I have recently ventured into the world of painting. It was a field from which I always shied away. I didn't trust myself to be even capable of standing at the brim and taking a dive into the vast ocean of this creative art. But I gathered courage. I bought stuff. I was a beginner, a novice. I didn't have to prove anything to anyone. I just had to try it out once to see how good or bad I am at it. And I did. And I enjoyed every bit of it.

I searched for some YouTube videos and found this picture made by some artist. And I decided to try it out. Sun is my favorite, it gives me energy, it gives me joy. The start to this phase of my life with the painting of the sun, what a coincidence! Hummingbird trying to suck nectar from the flowers against the backdrop of the glowing sun was a perfect first for me!

I will post all the paintings here regularly of whatever I do with the chalk pastels henceforth.