About Me
“Abstraction provides An Outlet To Who I Am, And Where I Am Going. It Opens Up The World In Layers That I Did Not Know Exist, While Still Keeping Me Grounded By Alluding To What Is Yet To Be Seen.”
artist bio
Swati is an Indian abstract expressionist artist based in Singapore. The endless possibilities of color, texture, shape, the orderliness in the seeming disorderliness of nature inspire Swatiâs art, and find a voice in her work through the use of acrylic and mixed media on canvas and paper. Her art practice is exploratory and process driven. Her delicate yet strong compositions unfold in layers through the use of vivid colors and abstract forms and open up the infinite possibilities of connections via the explorations of natural surroundings and human emotions. She has been trained at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore but as with any other art form most of her work is a result of her own explorations and visualizations.
artist statement
I make abstract paintings that celebrate the subtleties and expressiveness of colors and marks, the symbolism of shape, the depth of layers and a sense of discovery. These paintings are inspired by my surroundings, by fleeting memories, and by unspoken words and wonderment. They are an expression of my musings where the process matters more than the end result.
I am born and brought up in a small town in central India, before education, work and family brought with it a life of travel around the globe. Over time these experiences have taught me about the immense power of nature, and of human endeavor. The messiness, and the order; the clamor, and the peacefulness; the queer, and the customary is visible everywhere. Nature has a way of telling stories that captures all the above emotions, and people have been trying to do the same forever. From the earliest cave paintings to the most modern art, we have tried to tell a story: our story, as we see it, as we feel it, and abstraction is my way of transforming these experiences and feelings into its visual equivalent.
I work primarily with acrylic paint and other drawing mediums like pencils, charcoal, oil pastels and ink. I love exploring color and its materiality. Abstraction gives me the freedom to spontaneously express my thoughts on the canvas. The possibility of stumbling upon something unexpected as I work on a painting keeps bringing me back to my studio every single day. It brings a sense of joy and belonging. These paintings illustrate the conversations I have with myself, and I hope they speak to you too in some way.
education
2021
- Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Certificate in Printmaking – Silkscreen Printing), Singapore
2018
- Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Certificate in Western Art), Singapore
- Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Certificate in Western Abstract Painting), SingaporeÂ
Exhibitions & publications
2024
- âArtful Expressionsâ. Group show. Zubaadhi Studio & Gallery, Visual Arts Centre, Singapore
- âSingapore Tales: A Panorama through local eyesâ. Group show at The Arts House, Singapore
- âTogether, As One United Peopleâ Nation Day exhibition by Living with Art Gallery, Singapore
- âArt Unites”. Group show to celebrate âRacial Harmony Dayâ, Singapore
- âCanvas Connectionsâ. Group show. Zubaadhi Studio & Gallery, The Arts House, Singapore
2023
- VOICE OF ART 2 – Be One Gallery, ION Art Gallery, Singapore
- DREAMERS AND CREATORS -Selegie Arts Centre, Singapore
- Affordable Art Fair Singapore – Aestheletic Art Gallery
- CELEBRATIONS – German Centre for Industry & Trade, Singapore
- Canvas Connections, The Gallery at The Well, Singapore
- HOMELAND – Maya Gallery, Singapore
- Magazine Publication – Suboart Magazine, July, Issue 7
- ‘I am a Mother’ Exhibition – Design Orchard, Singapore
2022
- FINDING FREEDOM – Selegie Arts Centre, Singapore
- Pameran Postkad, ION Art Gallery, Singapore
- Charity Auction – Ray of Hope, Singapore
- FRAGMENTS Virtual Exhibition – NAFA Centre of Lifelong Education, Singapore
- Public Art Exhibition – Mother.Art.Healing – Library @Orchard, Singapore
- Magazine Publication – ARTIST TALK MAGAZINE, London, Issue 19
- RESILIENCE – Selegie Arts Centre, Singapore
- Methods of Abstraction; The Exquisite Discernibles & Inedible Marks – Virtual Exhibition – One East Asia Gallery, Singapore
2021
- ABSTRACT MODA Virtual Exhibition – NAFA Centre of Lifelong Education, Singapore
- ALIVE Fine Art Exhibition – Selegie Arts Centre, Singapore
2020
- Magazine Publication – JaamZIN Creative, May 2020 issue
2019
- Singapore Hotel Art Fair – Bank Art Fair, Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore
- ENSEMBLE: coming out into abstraction â The Arts House, Singapore