Niveditha Indrajit is a firm believer in the concept of self-discovery through art. “I have discovered a lot about myself through drawing and would like to create a platform through which more people will attain self-discovery,” says Niveditha who is a self taught artist, engagement specialist and writer. Donning multiple hats, she believes that art has the power to change a person and conducts art-workshops to this effect for people with different needs.
Niveditha conducts workshops for expectant mothers, building leadership skills and many more. “The workshop on expectant mothers is a part of The Yellow Banyan and we have already conducted three workshops. I am a mother and I have gone through the beautiful phase of giving birth and I have experienced the mood swings, the emotions that mothers go through. For those who lack a proper support system the workshop helps them handle these changes.”
The need for practising art and using it as a tool to express emotions came about, thanks to a writer’s block. “I used to write since childhood. But in the year 2003, I went through a writer’s block and was not able to express myself the written word. Later in 2006, I read a book on painting and my mother used to paint a lot. So I started painting and realised I was happier expressing myself through images rather than words.” The artist completed a course in psychology of self discovery and authentic dialogue and was keen to explore the connection between art and the process of realising the true self. Talking about the corelation, she adds, “Art is a way to express and the more you express, the better we know ourselves and I personally wanted to find a way to connect these two aspects.”
“There are times when we feel like we need to discover ourselves and in an effort to find myself, I joined the workshop in psychology in June 2011. My mother was a psychologist and she always encouraged me to think from a certain perspective.”
Pointing out that the right side of the brain is usually dominated by the left, the 37-year-old says, “While the right asks us to do anything and everything, our logic comes in the way. A balance should be present and we have to nurture our right side of the brain through art.” Niveditha has been an art critic for various magazines and has authored a book titled ‘I really Lived’ last year. “I am inspired by Betty Edwards teachings of basic skills of drawing and wanted to connect these skills to the daily emotions of human life. For example, I relate the perception of spaces to negativity and positivity present in our lives and many more. Based on this concept we decided to conduct this drawing workshop.”
The Yellow Banyan is conducting a five day workshop on drawing where it not only teaches drawing but also to gain self discovery through art. The workshop will be held from May 24 to 28 at Jubilee Hills from 10 am to 6 pm. The schedule will be decided based on the enrolment. “The workshop aims not only at honing drawing skills but also teaching life skills like building relationships, learning boundaries and much more through various activities,” adds Niveditha Indrajit. She will be conducting the session.
The main objective of the workshop is to teach drawing portraits, faces which earlier would seem impossible and gaining confidence, learning problem solving, gaining a platform to express our innermost thoughts through drawing and various other activities.
The workshop will be conducted for two categories – for the age group of seven and 20 years as well as 21 years and above. The workshop is priced at Rs 7,500 for the former category and Rs 12,500 for the latter.
