Amid Intermittent Lockdowns, Artists Use Objects At Home To Create Quirky Work thehindu.com

Nineteen-year-old Divya Baid stands in front of her mirror. Wielding a dripping paint brush and messy palette, she props up her phone to record and starts to outline her reflection on the mirror. Contours appear, colours fill in and a face slowly comes alive on the mirror: not her reflection, but a self- portrait.

As procuring art supplies became increasingly difficult with intermittent lockdowns in most Indian cities, artists are adapting by making using objects available at home; being forced to be creative is also leading to engaging, quirky work. When Delhi-based freelance artist Divya ran out of canvases, she gazed around the room and was struck by the the mirror as an unusual surface. Since then, she has been experimenting: with her mirror, a random stone and even her own body. She is not alone.