A symphony of colours

By K. Kannan

Twentyseven-year-old Sherry Arya has never let the social stigma attached to her hearing and speech loss come in the way of pursuing painting as her main passion. This also serves as a relief for her particularly when she is stressed out.

Determination personified, this young lady has admirers in countries like Oman and Muscat where people buy her paintings. ``She started painting when she was quite young and her hobby has motivated her to grow up as a young lady,'' says Sherry's sister, Shivani, even as an exhibition of her paintings began at ``Able Art Gallery'' located within the premises of the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC) here today.

With her art depicting her various moods, Sherry paints anything and everything that comes to her mind. ``What she feels from within, she expresses on paper,''is how her art is described by family members. Growing up with no inhibitions despite the social stigma of speech and hearing loss attached to her, Sherry has also done formal courses in fashion, textile designing and fabric printing.

Her art first came to public view when she participated in the 7th All India Traditional Arts Exhibition organised by the All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society (AIFACS) in 1996. Later, she participated in exhibitions held at FICCI and Ashoka Hotel and early this year, her paintings were part of an exhibition held at the Arpana Arts Gallery.

According to critics, Sherry's paintings exude music in a very subtle way. They are a symphony of colours and have often been described as a merger of passion and serenity. ``Sherry does florals and a lot of nature paintings as well. Sometimes, she picks up meditation as a theme and this gets reflected it through her paintings,'' her family members say.

Another artist whose works are on display at the ISIC is young Vasu Mehra, who has been confined to the bed and is barely able to sit on his wheel-chair since he was diagnosed for muscular dystrophy. A self-taught artist who specialises in water colours and pastels, Vasu's instant reply when asked whey he paints is "just to pass time."

Confined within the four halls of his house, Vasu, however, admits later that he took to painting as a form of self- expression. ``I used to paint with sketch pens earlier but I now use water colours.'' His main interest in the human form is a portrayal of his loneliness and the need for companionship. ``Nine of my paintings are on display at ISIC,'' Vasu informs, even as the exhibition salutes the die-hard spirit of these two disabled artists.

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