Visakhapatnam :
The first solo exhibition is a matter of pride and considered a big achievement for any artist. It is even more special when that artist is just 11 years old, as is the case with Vizianagaram girl Kottakki Divija.
The Class VI student of DAV Public School in Hyderabad held her first solo painting exhibition, organized by Lions Club, at her hometown of Salur in Vizianagaram.
Divija, who was the centre of attention when she was felicitated at the end of the two-day exhibition on Sunday, has got 50 awards from different organisations at the national, state, district and city level competions.
She has also been the recipient of six gold medals from the All India Child Art competition and exhibitions, as well as one from the Viswa Kala Darshini Youth Welfare Society, Rajamundry, in 2012. Divija has also been the recipient of the Nipuna Kids Excellence Award, Ugadi Puraskaram and the Bala Ratna.
Divija, the younger daughter of Kasturi Kumari and K Satyananda Patnaik, is an expert in painting with colours without first sketching with pencil. “I want to establish myself in the field of art and painting when I grow up. Artists such as Amrita Sher Gil and M F Hussain are my inspiration besides of course my mom who has encouraged me,” said the 11-year-old, who is not only a rank-holder in her class but also has keen interest in classical music and dance. “She loves singing and dancing and is quite talented in these arts as well. However, when she was very young we noticed her creativity in painting and decided to encourage her into pursuing art,” said Satyananda.
In the exhibition at Salur, 105 poster colour paintings and 126 greetings cards were on display, besides Divija’s various award-winning works. The young artist’s self-portrait has been a crowd-puller.
Her paintings, most of which had been done in the last two months, showcase various subjects from nature, her surroundings, rural life city and landscape. Some also showcase universal themes, including friendship, world peace and harmony, and biodiversity.
“She has used different techniques such as etching, folding, paper glitters, spreading technique, dry pastels, collage work, poster colours,” said B Sasibhushana Rao, Divija’s mentor and art teacher. “She is a talented child and could paint from her imagination even when she was six-seven years old,” said Rao.
source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Visakhapatnam / by Sulogna Mehta, TNN / June 03rd, 2013