Sanjay Nora

I was born and brought up in Solapur, a small beautiful town located in Maharashtra, India. Since childhood, I was highly fascinated with the painters who painted the movie posters of Indian cinema. I was very much influenced by the art of professional painters. After completing my schooling, I joined Abhinav Kala Mahavidyalaya in Pune and Kalavishwa Mahavidyalaya in Sangli to explore and experience various forms of painting. I was done with my art education in 2008 from the above-mentioned Institutes. I have received more than thirty awards from "Bombay art society", "The art society of India", "Camel art foundation", "Prafulla art foundation" and many such national level painting workshops and I have been selected for many national level art camps. Many national and international painters and professionals have my paintings in their archives, and this is something that has always motivated me and helped me to do better.

Some of the features of those paintings are as follows.

1. The painting "Amma" was selected for the Bombay Art Society's exhibition in 2007. This picture is of a mother, sitting by the window of the house and looking at the beautiful sky outside. This picture later made its way to a fascinated customer. 

Medium: - Acrylic paint on paper.

Size: -3 by 4 feet. 

2. The painting "Somewhere Memories" won the Bombay art Society's 2008 Student Section Award. This picture is of a college student, sitting on a chair in reverie, a soul full of thoughts enjoying his own company. 

Medium: -Pastel on paper

Size: -2.5 by 3 feet 

3.  "Lakshya" was selected for the 2008 Monsoon Painting Exhibition and was purchased by an art collector in Singapore. The painting is a bit of an experimental one and is a collection of four small paintings inspired by the famous novel Mrityunjaya.

Medium: - Watercolor on paper

Size: - 2.5 by 3 feet 

4. "Teen Age" is a picture of a young girl with so many dreams and aspirations in her eyes. Trying to capture all of the desires, and yearning of a teenage girl had helped me explore the unexplored. This picture has won the 2009 Art Society of India's Raja Ravi Verma Best Personality Award.

Medium: - Dry pastel on paper

Size: - "29 by 39" inches

5.  "Manmohini" is a live painting of a woman. This painting depicts the emotions that a middle-class woman holds, the hope that her eyes reflect, and the persona that she creates. The painting has won the 2013 CamelArt Foundation award.

Medium: - Charcoal pencil on paper

Size: -34 by 44 inches 

6.  "Manmohini 2" is a picture of a rural woman in north Indian attire. The finest details of her beauty has been captured in this painting, and this small detailing is something that was very much appreciated. This picture, in 2012, received the Best Personality Award.

Medium: - On paper with colored pencils.

Size: - "34 by 44" inches 

7. The painting "Joy of Indian Colors"  is a painting of a man from the rural parts, who entertains people with his puppet shows. His eyes tell us his struggles to survive his black and white life, yet always happy to fill other people’s lives with joy and colors. This painting won the 2016 Prafulla Art Foundation Gold Medal. 

Medium: - On paper with dry pastel and colored pencil

Size: - 3.5 by 4.5 feet

I have also worked as a professor at the College of Painting in Solapur between 2012 and 2015. During this time I have revamped the skills of students,  most of them are working as professional painters, capturing the beauty of the society, and trying to bring about a change in the society by conveying good values through their work.

In 2015 I started my own personal studio and institute named "Bindu Art Studio". This platform enables people to work and learn at the same time. I provide them guidance and help them to upgrade their skills, and sometimes, it turns out to be the other way around. I get to learn a lot of things from them as well.

I am very much fascinated with the realism style,  I also enjoy drawing and charcoal drawing.

Most of my paintings are on paper and canvas using pastel, charcoal, color pencil, acrylic colors, oil colors. I also paint for mixed media.

I am quite fascinated with Indian culture, it inspires me and paves a way to some brilliant ideas that I try to convey through my paintings.

I enjoy portraying Indian festivals, rituals and spiritual values through my paintings, also, I am working in the traditional Indian style of painting.

The art culture of India has always inspired me. I am trying to preserve the heritage of Indian art culture through my realistic style and take it to the international level so that its beauty could be experienced by all of us.

Nationality: Indian.

* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 15^th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.