KOCHI: In recent times, miniature art has not only gained traction but has also seen several innovations with artists using varied mediums such as leaves, wood, cloth and pencil tip as their canvas. With an experience of over five years, Jishnu Sreedharan is a miniature art exponent. Through ‘Kaapo Creations’, a joint venture that he runs with his friends, Jishnu has successfully turned art into a thriving career. Kaapo Creations executes different kinds of art installations, mini models for architects and customised pencil portraits.
Although an engineer by profession, Jishnu started sketching when he was in school. “I started with pencil drawings but I always wanted to do different mediums. I learned through YouTube videos and then started improvising on what I saw. Now I do art installations, sculptures and pencil portraits. I have recently completed an installation worth `2 lakh,” says Jishnu.
A self-taught artist, Jishnu has always tried to make his works stand out. His thread work of former president, the late A P J Abdul Kalam, won him the merit award from Prafulla Foundation in an event held in Bengaluru. “I completed the work in 24 hours using 114 nails. Although it was quite challenging, I was able to finish it. After that, I did a few more thread-based artworks,” says the 26-year-old art.
Passionate about miniature art, Jishnu says, “While creating miniature artwork, you need to have lot of patience. There are chances of the medium breaking as it is usually delicate. But, I like working with tiny things.” Jishnu has completed over 10,000 works which include pencil portraits, oil paintings, sculptures, pencil tip carvings and thread-based works.
Jishnu also accepts commissioned orders through his Instagram page, ‘ruzario321’. “If it’s a small miniature model, I take around 15 days. But large installations take a few months. Pencil portraits just take a day to complete. I have received many commissions from abroad,” says the artist. Jishnu is currently specialising in resin art which includes paintings, pendants, portraits, caricatures. Besides this, he is also a sand artist and has been doing sand art to create awareness on autism.