Artist Interview - Payal Sinha
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Payal, I am an engineer by day and a self-taught mixed media artist by night based in Bahrain.
Why do you do what you do?
I love creating art for myself because that helps me process my thoughts and emotions in a better way and love teaching that to others too. Being able to teach art to someone has become the most rewarding feeling for me recently.
You use so many vibrant colors, do you have any that you favor?
I believe that all the colors that I used make me feel a certain way as colors speak a lot about our emotions. On days that I feel happy I end up using yellows a lot and on days I feel calm I am more drawn towards blue.
What inspires your art?
Anything and everything that I see around me inspires me to create. It can be a beautiful sunset or a bunch of flowers I see at the florist.
How and when did you get into art?
I have always been a creative kid but about 3 years ago was when I started taking art seriously as it would a gateway from the negativity around me and help me process my emotions in a better way.
How has your practice changed over time?
Each painting teaches you something new, even if that is a failed painting and especially for a self-taught artist having failed painting is important. Over the years, I have learned to be more patient with myself and what I create. Not worrying out the final outcome and not giving up in between is something that has helped me a lot.
What’s your favorite piece of art that you’ve created? Why?
The most favorite has to be the fusion of impasto art and mandala that I did recently. It was definitely the most time I have spent on a mandala. Working on that mandala was the most satisfying work I had done. Each brush stroke brought sheer happiness and the final outcome was nothing but beautiful. It was unique in its very own way.
What’s the best piece of art advice you’ve been given?
Practise makes perfect. When you’re starting out you get very overwhelmed with everything you see but with time and practice you learn a lot.
What’s one art tip/technique you can share with us that you find really helpful?
Writing down your ideas and organizing them really helps me as I love working on different subjects and mediums. This way I can pick a particular subject and medium I want to use to paint them.
Do you have any secret tips or techniques you use to salvage a piece when you make a mistake?
Every small mistake can be fixed with a bit of imagination. Sometimes when you finish a piece it doesn’t look like a mistake at all but if it still bothering me I try to work around it by making a few changes in the shapes or the colors. But if the mistakes are bigger and something you cannot work through then it’s better to start again.
What is your favorite Strathmore paper? Why?
I have recently started using the 400 series watercolor papers for my gouache artworks are they are just a joy to work on. I have also tried the mixed media papers from the same series and they worked beautifully with alcohol brush markers and ink.
What art materials could you not live without?
Definitely my paints, brushes, and papers. In fact all of it. Each pen/pencil holds a special place in my heart.
What types of colors are you drawn to for your art and why?
That definitely depends on the subjects I am painting but I tend to use a lot of vibrant colors because it just makes me happy and lights me up.
Who are your biggest influences (or who were when you started doing art)?
Vincent Van Gogh is an artist that I have always admired. Unfortunately, I had to figure everything about art and art masters on my own after school since my school did not make kids fall in love with art at a very young age.
What’s the most common art-related question you get from your followers?
People are always curious about what supplies I use to create my artworks.
Website/social media links:
Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/thesimplyaesthetic/
Youtube- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEG17Nq9fHEdRnkytyBSVNg
