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“I want people to remember me for bringing them meaning and joy through either my art or my presence. Someone who did everything with earnestness and passion.”
Lists, lists, lists. The list of lists is endless. And as much as we love to pay allegiance to the format that won the attention of a digital generation even as it became a millennial punchline, its well-meaning shackles felt too tight for a truly free-wheeling look at ‘artists’ in the contemporary Indian context. So without straying too far from the intent to observe, display and share however, we decided to carve out our own little space on the internet—an online gallery if you will—to showcase the never-ending plethora of Indian artists who continue to spark fires with their work.
Pixels will be dedicated each week to individuals who are finding their own distinct voices, sometimes personal, sometimes political but always worthy of engaging with. Mediums have no place here either. Our ‘Artists Of The Week’ range from a luthier from one of Mumbai’s oldest neighbourhoods to live visual artists who combine everything from stage design to animation and 3D mapping installations to deliver staggering live experiences.
…And everybody in between of course.
Today, we profile a designer-turned-tattoo-artist from Bangalore, Shyamli Panda.
Working at a small graphic design firm after graduating from Srishti School of Art Design and Technology in 2010, Shyamli Panda had a very idealistic view for her life. “I soon found out that most of the work in the market was self-contained, corporate and largely unromantic,” says the 30-year-old.
Shyamli tried her hand at illustrations for children’s books, but after some time felt the unidimensional approach to art wasn’t helping her grow. “I wasn’t learning or growing, rather I was actively regressing.” Broken hearted at another failed attempt at artistic exploration, she found solace in picking up another, different skill altogether, one that gave her the gratification that she’d been searching for—tattooing.
Having mentored under Devilz Tattooz’ artist, Lokesh, Shyamli honed in on her tattooing skills and has been at for five years now This shift in profession has taught her real focus and precision in drawing, she shares, “It’s really gratifying to know that someone out there loves wearing your art permanently on their skin.”
Tattooing is a rapidly evolving industry with constantly changing trends, styles and technology, one that keeps you on your toes and constantly pushes you out of your comfort zone - you never stop learning. “The competition is stiff and you need to work with all kinds of visual mediums to keep yourself sharp and ahead of the game,” Shyamli muses.
Constantly expanding her horizons Shyamli diverse body of work is always growing. The restless bug kicks in and off she goes, taking up new endeavours to challenge herself and her avenues of expression. She started independent projects, working with watercolours, a short studio course in Barcelona as well as a three-part graphic novel that she says takes up most of her spare time. “For me, working on several things simultaneously feeds the energy and skill of one into another and makes my visual language stronger, more distinct. Hopefully, I’ll be able continue working with all these different mediums going forward,” she says.
Scroll on to know her a little better.
I. What would you describe as your perfect day?
“I’m thinking of a recent Wednesday during my art program in Barcelona. I woke early enough to fit in yoga, meditation and a great breakfast (green tea, avocados and camembert!) Till noon, I worked on a storyline for my graphic novel and finished the art for a new spread. I then walked an hour through some beautiful neighborhoods to a shared studio space to work on a lino print. I’m still learning this technique, so not everything went smoothly, but damage control has always been an exciting element in my work process.
I spent the whole day on my feet, surrounded by other artists, etching out an illustration of a girl who was broken, tired but still dancing. By the time I finished my prints and hung them to dry, it was past 10. A studio-mate and I then cooked dinner with fresh vegetables and chorizo, sharing stories from our past and present. I finally fell into the bed exhausted but with my mind tingling with the happiness and contentment, already looking forward to being wide awake the next morning.”
II. What is your first memory of exploring your medium of choice?
“If I have to pick the medium that I’m most comfortable with and thus work most regularly with, it’d have to be watercolors. I started using watercolours some time during my final year in college for my thesis project. I found that it was easy to manipulate and lent an ethereal, dream like quality to my artwork.
However, I’ve been drawing in a variety of mediums since I was very young (though not always very well). I usually let the content of the artwork dictate the medium. At present, I tattoo using rotary machines and ink, paint digitally for work that requires short deadlines and use brush pens and watercolors for my comic book or graphic novel work. I also use acrylics and oils when I feel like challenging myself. And during a recent stint in Barcelona, I discovered that I really love lino prints and spray paints! Honestly, I’d want to have all print mediums at my disposal sooner or later.”
III. What according to you is your best creation?
“That’s tough! I feel like with each new piece I get slightly better so that becomes my best creation- so technically the next thing I make will be the best to date. However, there are a couple of projects that do stand out, and one is actually from 8 years ago. It was my final project at Srishti School of Art and Design, called ‘The Big Old Leaf.’ It was an illustrated infographic book that explored links between the food industry and climate change and also offered solutions for people looking to be a part of the sustainable food movement. It really established my belief in art and design as mediums of change. There was a lot of hard work that went into and I don’t believe there had been a project as immersive and meaningful for me since- until I started working on the graphic novel.
That project is far more existential and auto-biographical in content. I hope it’s capable of moving people- or at least keeping them interested for a while.“
VI. What are the three things you are really into, besides your art?
“Papaya, cheese and new foods. Listening to and collecting new music, and Haruki Murakami.”
V. What is that one thing, that really annoys you?
“So many things annoy me! Top two would be disingenuous sycophantic ‘yes-men’ and my own lack of entrepreneurial skills (not necessarily in that order).”
VI. What’s that something that you have always wanted to do, and really look forward to doing it some day in your career?
“Having an art and print studio! It’s been my dream since I was a teenager- It’ll be a small, hole in the wall place where I’ll work on comics/ graphic novels, do screen-prints and lino-prints of music merchandise and sell cool stationery.”
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