Step Into the Magic Realm

"See, this is my opinion: we all start out knowing magic. We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us. We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand. But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls. 

After you go so far away from it, though, you can’t really get it back. You can have seconds of it. Just seconds of knowing and remembering. When people get weepy at movies, it’s because in that dark theater the golden pool of magic is touched, just briefly. Then they come out into the hard sun of logic and reason again and it dries up, and they’re left feeling a little heartsad and not knowing why. When a song stirs a memory, when motes of dust turning in a shaft of light takes your attention from the world, when you listen to a train passing on a track at night in the distance and wonder where it might be going, you step beyond who you are and where you are. For the briefest of instants, you have stepped into the magic realm.

That’s what I believe."

 -Boy's Life

 

 

 It's been six months since I put OLIE out there into the world, and it's been a lot of fun. I've met a lot of people, had a lot of dreams come true (already!) and since I celebrate every single small thing in our journey - it's been a whirlwind of joy and sometimes confusion (and frustration!) . But the magic stays, it's there when I need to call upon it, and it underlines everything I do with OLIE. And when I tell you my tales, the stories behind every cushion, lamp - I see you step away from reality and take a little magic back home with you. And a moment like that keeps me inspired. 

 

Such a beautiful quote from Boy's Life  !

Peep Into My Other World

 

Leaves of yellow

turquoise and olive

An intake of breath

(oh the wondrous joy!)

As they fall, dancing 

to the song of the wind

A pause in the flurry

of a moments breath

When glitter settles

as the dragonfly rests

the lovely nirmala, humoring my obsessive desire for the absolute perfect shade of teal.

A glimpse into the Olie world 

vintage love

photo credits : my lovely friend, heena pari 

So much is said so easily through a few pictures and words. This is why I sometimes feel that talk is always just that, long winding talk. And the reason why I love this space and blogging so much. Words are understood so much better when written and time is taken to look and absorb and stories learned. 

Every collection has a mood, an inspiration. A slow translation from sketch to product. A short verse accompanies each and I want you to interpret it as you will. Feel that sudden joy, the upside down feeling in the stomach, goosebumps as you relive an experience and then bring it home and tell your stories again,

through a cushion cover perhaps, or a glowing lamp - complete with shadows and colours. 

More soon, I can't believe how wonderfully people have been reacting to Olie. Thank you for your love - it keeps the silly smiles pasted on and spirits high !

Our facebook page is up and I would love for you to stop by and say hello ! www.facebook.com/olieindia

Have a great week !

Dreaming a Dream

If I could capture the moon

And paint a sky full of blue

Fight scattered storms

To light the night

If I could skip along clouds

And hear the wind sing out loud

Rewrite the rhyme

And slow down time

I see a world

Where every boy and girl

Has all they need

To live free

Where everyone

Could share the sun

Life is only a dream

Dream with me.

-Jackie Evancho

A storm has been brewing, and I have been killing myself keeping it from you ! But the time has finally come when I can tell you all about what I've been up to the past year .

You know all about my love for Pondicherry. So many of my first posts were written while I lived there and drew inspiration from people and places in that little town.

But before I left Pondi, another thought was born. The simple lifestyle there, the magic in cycling down a cobbled street, the time we all had to appreciate every little thing, the love the people in the town have for the sea and its wild unpredictability - these were what made it beautiful - the little pleasures.
I remember sitting by the sea, with my sketchbook and pencil -scribbling away, wondering how I could turn my illustrations into an experience. Bring this magic and whimsy into peoples lives, maybe their homes.

And so a year later I get to tell you about Olie. Olie meaning light in tamil launches in Bangalore in a few weeks with its first collections of carecrafted accessories and lighting. My inspiration translated into reality. Now a mood, an ethereal beauty for you to experience in your homes and spaces. And I am so excited about it ! The illustration above is a mindmap of sorts, mapping the journey and thought process that led to Olie. But the real journey has been in the learning, and the people I've met and the good and bad experiences I've had the past couple of months. It already is such a long, rich story to tell - and I'm going to tell you all about it, between scribbles and pictures.

More soon !
much love to you !

Reflections

We are but a reflection of ourselves

There is no beginning and there is no end.

Its the circle of life.

Its time for a change in the world and its people.

Imagine all the people sharing all the world

You may say Im a dreamer

But im not the only one

I hope someday you will join us

and the world will live as one.

Lennon

The Fish at the End of the Rainbow

I dream of flying into a space that is empty of thoughts, the only emotion i would feel is 

complete pure happiness at the freedom of it all. 

I miss those days when I lived in my little room (whilst still studying) when I would climb to the terrace and watch the skies and the tops of houses and life go by below.

Bubbles of Promise

There is much that one can learn from watching the sea.

Good things come and go, and life has to go on.

Sometimes, the dream you have been working on and dreaming of for so long, that tickles the tips

of your toes with its tantalising bubbles of promise, may just come in with the next wave. 

It brings you peace, it exudes calm, it teaches you patience.

I miss the sea. My mind feels so clogged with dreams and hopes and thoughts and other people that I can barely see whats ahead of me. thinking of the sea helps. a trip home is due. 

Above Your Head

Hello!! Im going through a crazy time in life, sometimes big decisions seem so massively huge and i spend half my life worrying over things but I know that later, i am going to look back and think : silly me, what a thing to worry about. So thats what Im doing these days. not very productive. But lately ive been doing a lot of identity design ! And loving it. I love the process of creating a face for a client and then taking it forward. Its just so interesting ! Also, my little story is over ! Here are the five. Theyre soon going to be printed and framed and be adorning the walls of Annikas nursery :) 

And let me tell you of the little story that goes alongwith these illustrations.
Once upon a time there lived a little girl, (lets call her Annika after her new owner to be) She found this door in her home and it was one big circular door.She wondered what was behind it, and one day decided to find out. But this door was locked! And annika suddenly remembered the key necklace she always wore ! She tried it in the lock and it turned. Her eyes grew big with excitement and she opened the door to see this incredible scene in front of her eyes, toadstools with peeping squirrels, magical pink horses that floated along strange grassy lands which were in steps and had ladders to go up to the next grassy land and trees with all kinds of fruit growing at the same time.. and even a tree of stars! She walked along the little bridge that popped up and entered the little world. And did she have the time of her life there! She came across this little party and joined the fairy folk and little creatures there and had some delicious pink cake that melted in her mouth and all this under a tree of lights and stars. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
And then a big bird swooped in and annika climbed on her back and they flew amongst the stars till they reached her home. It wasnt long before she fell asleep, a happy smile on her face.

i love ze magical lands !
Also, i forgot to mention, and now im back and actually editing the post to say this - that between the five illustrations, annikas date of birth, time of birth, weight when she was born and her name are hidden somewhere :)

Fairytale Love

You probably already have this figured out, but i love stories. And i think im going backward mentally, because instead of reading intellectually stimulating books, these days i find myself going back to the enid blytons and other fairytales kids read. it makes it so much easier to live in a bubble.
A new project for a client who has just had a little girl, and is giving me such a treat, by asking me to do a series of illustrations for the babys nursery. And the whole theme is a little girl entering a magical world.

There is a short little story behind it, and there are going to be five illustrations! Ill tell you the story when all five are done! Oh oh good news! Skinny Scribbles has been published!! I have a copy in my hands, and I think you should be able to buy it! Im very happy with the print, it looks lovely, if i may say so myself :)
Half the weeks over, and the way times-a-flying, it should be the weekend before you know it, have a good one! much love.

Dream Base

This is something Ive been wanting to do for a while now, Nobody tells you how hard it is to take interior shots! what looks good to my eyes, just doesnt come out the same on camera. But finally (with a little help from siddharth, who i frantically called while panicking about wrong light, etc) I shot some that dont look so bad :)
Welcome home ! I havent clicked every little bit, It was a race against fading light, so just the bits that I love. I love the lights hanging from a branch that I installed over my dining table, and the beautiful windows there. I love my kitchen which is so vintage - I painted it mint green to add to that whole feel! And my bedroom - that got painted blue ! I havent done such a super job with little bits of paint dripping onto the floor, im probably going to get yelled at by our landlord when he sees this :) but oh well, makes me happy for now! Its also our first grown up home - with real furniture ! I dont think I mind growing up so much :)

Self Portrait

Ive always wanted to draw my own self portrait. and Ive tried, many many times, sitting in front of a mirror mostly. I could probably draw yours just fine, but when it comes to me, I dont see myself in a mirror clearly enough, sometimes i cant even remember what I really look like. To me, im a jumble of emotions and hair. 

So this charcoal drawing is just that. a jumble of things, a girl with big eyes and fish. 

Priya Sebastian has a blog, theplumtree2.blogspot.com and she does some beautiful charcoal drawings. After seeing so much of it on her blog I went in search of my charcoal pencil. 

Im finally going back to pondicherry for the weekend. cant wait! The kabir yatra has reached auroville this weekend, so if the fates bring you there, you should stay and wind down.

Fish And Eyes

This would be sloth version 2 :) I just couldnt feel very warmly towards the earlier sketch. This one though, is wicked enough me thinks ! *gleeful* Ive already said what I had to about how I feel about Sloth, im not going to repeat myself - how i feel hasnt changed- but i just see it differently now, a bit like a kaleidoscope.

Same colours, different sights. 

A lot of rather interesting things are rearing their heads, I shall tell you of them when things are more certain !But life continues to be good. Im settling down a bit in chennai though my heart sobs for pondicherry. But I love the house here. though its far from pretty and im really not done with it, its surrounded by green goodness and flowers and two happy barking dogs and big big windows so i can feast my eyes on leafy wonders all day. So its good for my mind and soul. Pouring all my love into this house is going to drain me completely i think. Its just so big, its going to be one slow process. 

Maybe after im done, i put up pictures for you to see!

Have a beautiful happy week and weekend! Lots of love.

Close your Eyes

 music, all day and all night long -  freedom from your own thoughts.

 If you desire me

give up all desire

Become like me

and all joy is yours

-kabir

Its hard to talk about a trip like this. I think that I was hoping for inspiration, but found something else.
Maybe I realise now that you dont need to search too far to find answers, and they lie within you. When your two mind-hearts meet, its magic that takes over. who needs reason?

Parvathy Baul, during a beautiful satsang one afternoon quoted from a song :

mind, go home.
a world where you roam travelling
why waste your time being a traveller?

Skinny Scribbles!

I've really had a hard time keeping this leetle bit of excitement from all of you, but Im doing a childrens book with Scholastic :D And as you know, I have reallly been wanting to do one, so Im thrilled to bits to be covered in ink and paint drowning in a gorgeous story about a little girl called Samina and an envelope child called Skinny Scribbles and their whole adventure. Its funny, it makes you go aww sometimes and I love how dreamy the whole story is. It goes into production in April me thinks, I will let you know when its out!

So yes, I love it  and I love illustrating it. Its also in black and white! Im so used to spending hours with my colours that its a refreshing change to play with black and white again. I hope you like it !! Here are a few illustrations from the book :)

Im also off for a very exciting sounding trip to Bikaner, to be part of the Kabir yatra ! check out kabiryatra.org. Hoping to be filled with Sufi wisdom and all the love they sing about. So Ill see you next in March! much love.

Magical Children's Worlds

The beginning of another week - Time seems to be flying away from me these days, and its going off faster now that the year is coming to an end. With so much planned, it feels like a prank being played. sigh.


I had mentioned to you about my desire to illustrate for childrens books, I got a few calls since then and though so far only one has worked out, Its been so so much fun making samples for these lovely stories.


I cant tell you too much about the story, (that would be wrong since its not mine) but its about a puppy whose parents are trying to put to bed, so in this illustration shes being given a bath in the hope that she will feel sleepy! :) I loved doing it, its my first foray into the children's book world and fingers crossed, I'm going to get my chance at doing a book soon!


Had a great weekend, and a halloween party - lots of decorations and crafts for that one - so youll be seeing some pictures soon !! Have a lovely week ! Much love !!



This work by amrita is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Floating with the Stars

                                                     

The earth withers

the moon crumbles

one by one

stars flutter into dust

Another paper collage, actually this is the first one I tried. It looks so beautiful on the white paper, but sigh Im just not able to replicate it and get the shadows on camera, so this picture will have to do for now. But I love the way it brings everything to life, making it so dreamy. 

I have also made it my dream to illustrate a childrens book- a magical story I wants. So if any of you know of any fantastic writers or any such opportunities do think of me!

Much love, I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

The Tree of Wisdom & Life

 I was in Bangalore for the weekend, and found myself at a theatre one evening for a sort of musical. One of the most soul stirring performances I've seen in a while . Maybe because they were asking the same questions I am these days. But I had to pull out my sketchbook and start doodling while the music intoxicated my soul. I was deeply moved and this is the result.

A friend of mine who is some sort of genius with paper came over last week and showed me how to make 3d collages with paper.Thank you Ishita! I love this, and love the way it brings my ' Tree of Wisdom ' to life.
With the root above and branches below the tree stands for all that is pure, that is Brahman, that is immortal. In it the world rests and no one goes beyond it. The upside down Tree of Life has roots in Brahman. Brahman is the origin and support of the phenomenal universe, and a person who has realised the self is said to have realised Brahman. 


To find out more, take a peek at www.sunaad.org

Death- Teardrops from the tree of life.

This work by amrita is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Lost in The Sea

                                   

                                                                   For whatever we lose,

                                                                                             like a you or a me

                                                                                   It's always ourselves we find

                                                                                                   in the sea.

                                                                                              - EE Cummings

                          
                                              Watercolours while sitting on the rocks of the beautiful  Pondicherry beach.


                                           

Let the Wings Fly

                                                                  minds underground moths
                                                                                               grow filmy wings
                                                                                          and take a farewell flight
                                                                                       into the sunset sky - Tagore

I feel like one enthusiastic cutlet. 2 posts in one day. But Ive been very excited lately, trying out new styles and reading endlessly about all sorts of things. For those of you who don't know, Im on a sabbatical of sorts . Taking a break after many years of working and its been about 2 weeks now that ive had the time to doodle and dive into this cloud of freedom.


I have always believed that to do your best work, you need to free yourself from reality, and from your own mind. Enter your subconcious dream world where magic and beauty lurk, and then draw, paint and get that image onto paper. But its hard to escape from your own mind. I did have one beautiful experience that Im dying to tell you of, maybe tomorrow..

This work by amrita is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.