Paidiraja Kalla and Dulam Srinivas used to create concept art for games during their time at Zynga. They now work at BYJUs as artists to create informative videos for children.
“We paint as a hobby on the weekends,” Kalla says. “We used to exchange tips and tricks, and information about other artists.”
Elaborating further on the fact that Folk Emotions was their very first exhibition, he says, “We never thought we’d come up here and put up our art. It just happened.”
The inspirations for their works are many. For Kalla, his creativity stems from his emotions, while Srinivas finds art in more tangible ways, like temple architecture and classical dance. “Kuchipudi and Bharatanatya have been around me since childhood and I have a great interest in it,” he says.
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Talking about the various styles he has used in his art, Srinivas says, “I observe a lot of artists and their paintings and my style changes from looking at that.” When asked if their art style will keep changing or one day become constant, Kalla says, “Change is a must for artists, for everyone. If we don’t expand the circle we are in we will be confined to that forever. We need to become free and fly. Maybe after a few years, we may come to an end and decide on one style, but right now we aren’t fixed to anything.”
Comparing between digital and traditional art, Kalla thinks that digital art has more takers for its easy accessibility, while artists value the traditional medium more. “This is art that the artist can touch and feel directly. The painting is right before them. I think this natural effect is lost digitally. There are of course talented artists in that field, but that requires different skills.”
The two are already making plans for future exhibitions. “I’ve become very interested in fashion recently,” Srinivas says.
“I will be focusing on something related to that for my next exhibition.”
Kalla, on the other hand, is still finalising things, “I have a few ideas. But I haven’t decided the medium yet, so it will have to wait.”
