Have you ever read a beautiful poem and felt it take form in your mind? That’s exactly what happens for Shilpy Gupta, an artiste from the city who takes these image forms and blends them with pottery to create exquisitely intricate artwork! The artiste has come a long way since she caught the poetry bug, around 15 years ago and now depicts Rumi’s poetry and Buddha’s philosophy onto solid canvases like platters and long vases, made of ceramic. Shilpy recently hosted her first solo exhibition on April 1. We talk to the budding artiste about the glazing art of Poetry on Pottery and her journey with it.
The thrill for Shilpy, was to create a different canvas to depict her art on. “In India, poetry is not considered a full-fledged art form, and neither is pottery. But both the forms are very intensive and creative all the same. And while I love painting, I wanted a canvas with more depth. So, I experimented with clay and moulded some platters that have a large surface area where I illustrate,” says the artiste who has had no formal training in the field, but has been at it for over 15 years! “I absolutely love poetry and Rumi is my favourite. Though Buddha’s words are considered as his teachings, to me, it’s poetry. So Rumi and Buddha are my greatest influences when it comes to what I do. Apart from that, my travels also greatly influence me,” shares Shilpy, whose previous series were on her travel to Kutch.
For somebody who worked for rural development, how did the change in career paths happen? “I would constantly visit NGOs when I worked with the government and that’s when I got exposed to pottery. Then I moved to the US and that’s where I learnt the art of pottery because it’s very mainstream there. And though I’ve been at it for 15 years, I’m still learning!” she exclaims. “The thing about pottery is still a form of handicraft and hasn’t gained as much recognition as I’d like it to in our country. There is still some stigma against it. But luckily for me, when I decided to quit my job and follow my passion, my family was nothing but supportive,” smiles the avid traveller. So what does the future hold for her, we want to know. “My next series is going to revolve around Hampi. The place is so mesmerising and I’m craving to put it down on my kind of canvas,” she smiles in conclusion.
