Pratibha Madan is a self-taught, freelance painter who recently moved to Melbourne with her family.
Born in Hissar, Haryana, Pratibha spent most of her life in and around Delhi. In her conversation with SBS Punjabi, she said that although she had an interest in painting from her childhood, yet, she never really got a chance to try her hand in it until about five years ago.
Pratibha was initially drawn towards painting divine painting. She said it was something about the various forms that people worshipped that attracted her. She painted various painting of Buddha, Ganesh etc and from there turned towards painting other portraits.
According to Pratibha, she found solace in figurative art. She says that all the portraits that she paints are inspired by people that she has come across in her life and in some way or the other depict the culture and communities that she has come to know.
Source: Supplied
Source: Supplied
Source: Supplied
“My work has strong reflections of culture and traditions from India, a place where I was born and brought up.”
Even though, most of her paintings from the time she was in India are figurative, she is yet to try her hand on live portraits, something that may come to her in the future.
Pratibha moved to Melbourne, Australia with her family about a year and a half ago. She says that the move from India to Australia was a big change in her life. After coming to Australia, she tried her hand at abstract painting and liked the concept as much as figurative painting.
She says that the colors and shape of her paintings, especially abstract paintings depend hugely on the mood and surroundings of an artist. In a happy mood, an artist is tempted to pick up vibrant colors such as red and yellow whereas while in nature, the temptation is to use more green and blue tones.
For Pratibha, painting is her heart and soul.
Source: Supplied
Source: Supplied
Source: Supplied
“I paint because I find my soul and heart in it. It gets me up in the morning looking forward to the possibilities that the day brings.”
Pratibha Madan’s first solo exhibition ‘Confluence’ is currently on at Mount Waverley art gallery.
'Confluence' is about her journey as an artist as well as an individual.
Source: Supplied
“I moved to Australia last year with my husband and two kids. This shift from known to unknown has influenced my art practice also.”
“While in India, my artworks mainly included figurative paintings that were contemporary yet rooted in tradition. After moving here I have forayed into abstract art through flow art.”
Source: Supplied
Source: Supplied
The series of paintings in 'Confluence' explore the diversity as well as amalgamation of two art forms.
Also read
