Inspired by Howard Hodgkin's collection of Mughal miniature paintings of elephants.
Oil and acrylic on linen.
145 x 85 cm

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Acrylic and oil on linen
65 x 45 cm

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I bought a book called ‘The Night Life of Trees’. It’s a book full of intricate silk screen prints made by Ram Singh Urveti, Bhajju Shyam and Durga Bai of the Gond tribe in central India. Each print is accompanied by a story.

Here is one of those stories:

The Night of the Glowing Sembar

‘In the rainy month of July. A cowherd was looking for a lost cow along the edge of the forest. The evening grew darker, and there was no sign of the cow anywhere. The cowherd became anxious, and the little calf with him cried for her mother.

Together, they wandered into the forest calling out for the cow and soon they lost their way. Night fell fast and the black clouds gathering in the sky confused the cowherd.He could do nothing but weep with the calf.

A firefly saw the scene and felt pity for the two lost creatures. "Follow me," he called to them. "I think I can lead you to what you seek"

And so the two walked through the dark forest, led by the lone blinking light.

And all of a sudden, the cowherd saw a strange vision ahead of him. It was a Sembar tree, shining like a jewel in the blackness.

On every leaf,on every branch, sat a firefly.  And under the tree, Bathed in the glow, was the lost cow.

So to this day, we know that good spirits live in the Sembar tree, and to this day the cowherd and the firefly are friends.  And if you happen to be lost in the forest, you should find your way to the protecting Sembar, glowing like gold in the night'

From the 'Night Life of Trees', Tara Books

Here is my painting in response to this story. Depicted here is the moment of relief when  the cow is seen safe and sound under the tree.

Gouache on Paper
37x 25cm

Oil on canvas
75 x 55 cm

Oil on canvas
95 x 60 cm

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Gouache on wasli paper
36 x 27 cm

Acrylic and oil on linen
65 x 45 cm

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Acrylic and oil on linen
65 x 45 cm

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Collaboration with Vinita and Ajay Sharma
Gouache on hand made paper
Each piece 19 x 15 cm

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Hand made paint and gold paint on Wasli Paper.
Painted in Jaipur with Vinita Sharma
32 x21cm

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Hand made paint on hand made paper. Decorated by Vinita Sharma.
85 x 65cm

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Gouache, Wasli paper
21 x 32

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Pigment paint on sanganir paper
135 x 92 cm

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Hand made clay paint with gold on Wasli Paper
29 x 19.5cm

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Hand made gouache with gold on Wasli Paper
27 x20.5cm

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Hand made paint with gold on Wasli Paper
5.5 x 14.5

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Hand made gouache with gold  on Wasli Paper
24 x 18cm

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Hand made paint on hand made paper. This painting is a rearrangement of the Pichwai painting. Designed by me. Painted by Vinita Sharma.
29 x 20cm

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Shamsa (or 'little sun' in Persian), Gouache and shell gold (23 carat) on hand seized Paper. 
30 x 25cm

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One day whilst cleaning dishes with my friend Georgia Cass, I commented on how I liked her t-shirt with a big Panda on it. We then proceeded to play a game naming as many black and white animals as we could. We were surprised at how many there are.

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It got me thinking about Taxonomy- the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. Why not create a visual taxonomy. So here we have animals from all different classes, birds, mammals, fish, amphibians, insects etc. but ones that all share the same colouration. They could be subdivided further into groups with the same pattern:  the snow leopard and the gecko could go into a spots family; the Zebra, snake, snail, frog and the damsel fish go into the stripy family etc.

I might paint orange animals next.

Gouache on Paper
37 x 27 cm

A visual conversation between two elephants, cultures and artists. The Elephant on the left was painted by Vinita and the one on the right was painted by me. Hand made paint on wasli  paper.
20 x 29cm

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Oil and charcoal on canvas
55 x 80 cm

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19 x 29cm
Gouache and Shell gold on wasli Paper

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I wanted to paint a balloon. Upon googling 'hot air balloon' I discovered that apparently, the first ever passenger flight took place on 19th September 1783, in Versailles. A large crowd of around 130,000 people witnessed the event and among the guests were Louis XV1, Mary Antoinette and the French court. The passengers suspended below a hot air balloon were a sheep, a duck and a cockerel. Why these particular animals were chosen, I don't know. The balloon flew for 2 miles, and the passengers returned to earth safely (but probably with a bump) 8 minutes later. Here they are mid-flight wondering what's going on.

Created in 2011
Oil on Paper
36x28cm

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26 x 21cm
Oil on Canvas

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I saw this tree by the Wolvercote round about and love its shape and general symmetry. It is at its best in late April, bursting with life. It's like a firework but better.  It reminded me of ‘The Night of the Glowing Sembar’ painting; I thought I’d paint the cow from that story under this tree.

Created in 2011
Oil on primed paper
37 x 29 cm

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Oil on Primed Paper
37 x 29cm

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