I have been preoccupied with the circular form for years, which started out as daily circular ink drawings on post-it notes and ended up being seeds of inspiration for larger works. According to one of my favourite philosophers, the life work for each one of us is seeking out what is at the centre of our “sacred circle”, which involves the discipline of pulling all the scattered aspects of our life together, focussing on that centre and ordering ourselves to it. With this in mind, each painting in the series draws on mythic narratives that I anchor myself to. In ‘Wellness Realm’, I anchor on the central idea of the Kalpavruksha, which in Vedic mythology is the sacred world tree; in some traditions it is the tree at the centre of the cosmos, in some it connects the underworld to the heavens, and in others it is the source of creation, wisdom, immortality and the granting of wishes. In ‘Indigo Beginnings’ I draw on the narrative of the churning of the primordial ocean, serving to represent the creator’s limitless potential and a state of churning that precedes and accompanies the manifestation of life. In ‘Remembering Paradise’ and ‘Entering Paradise’ I anchor myself around the majesty of mountains, which in many cultures represents the sacred connection between the earth and the heavens; they simultaneously convey an immensity of presence and ephemeral transcendence. They naturally evoke a sense of journey and quest, while also evoking a sense of stillness and arrival. 

In ‘Circular Stories’ I anchor myself to mythic narratives of churning, creation and quest at the centre of each painting. In the ‘Madhuban Series’, it is simply the garden, as a metaphor for the garden of our lives.