Following a quick history recap of the month’s chosen artist, participants pick any one of the respective artist’s work as their inspiration and create their own interpretation. Participants are also encouraged to proceed with their works once it gives them an idea of how the artist expressed himself. “If an artist represents her life through a symbol, you can represent your own through the one you create. Artist Frida Kahlo, for instance, expressed herself through self-portraits; so participants were encouraged to express themselves through their own self-portraits,” she adds. For the founder, it mirrors her own experience. “We are using that artist as a mirror. What we see in that mirror, what moves us, what unsettles us, what we want to steal, will always be a reflection of our own inner world.” Safrin says.
These workshops have also helped Safrin nurture healthy arguments, nudging her to unlearn and relearn. Adding a layer to these workshops is following a particular medium. For the first workshop on Spanish artist Salvador Dali, the theme was Surreal Images, which meant working with prints and cutters. For the second on Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, the focus was on embroidery. The recent one on Raja Ravi Varma focused on Cyanotype prints. “Art doesn’t always have to carry a meaning. It’s up to the participants. If I give you a box, either to stay within the box or to come out of it is totally up to you. But you must know that the box exists,” she says.
