KOCHI: Painting is a talent and it can be executed using different mediums like acrylic , oil, charcoal. But Kochi-based Sridhar Sahasram is one who loves working with glitter pens and is pioneering in glitter pen art, not commonly used as a medium.His first exhibition titled ‘Sri’ displaying more than 200 of his art-works will be underway from today and continue till February 18 at Durbar Hall.
The paintings are portraits of various deities including Lord Ganesha, Shiva, Radha-Krishna and Jesus Christ. Sahasram said that each painting took about 25 days to complete and as the glitter pen does not last for long, he had to buy new ones frequently. He added that he spent about 3-4 hours on each painting and all the works exhibited were completed by 2017.
“The glitter pen art cannot be made on a normal paper as it spreads even after keeping it for hours. I use special imported papers from Italy and France that is available in shops here to make these paintings”, says Sahasram. Once the art is put on papers, photo lamination is done so that it gets a shelf-life. Sahasram, a soft-skill trainer by profession began this passion about six years ago.
He mentioned that he used to attend various conferences as part of his job and during this he used to scribble down various drawings. “This actually helped to increase my concentration and influenced me to take it up seriously. I was not satisfied with pencil and paint and finally opted to go with glitter pens”, he said.
He highlighted that his passion is a bit costly affair as the paper and pens are expensive to buy. But his love for art is encouraging him to learn more and implement it. He further says that being a devotee prompted him to choose the lords as the theme for his first exhibition. He says, “The glitter pens come in 10 different colours and maximum of them are in golden shades, the colour mostly used in the portraits of deities.”
He has painted more than 300 pieces but due to space constraints, 200 will be displayed in the gallery.Depending on the feedback he receives from the exhibition he will start working on his next venture where he intends to use nature as his theme. The exhibition is open from 11 am to 7 pm.