The tenth edition of World Art Dubai will take place from May 2 to 5 and will feature over 4,000 works of art from around the world. As many as 400 galleries and artists from 60-plus countries are participating in this edition of the art festival which has been held regularly since 2014 with the exception of 2020, when it was held digitally due to the pandemic.
The Hindu MetroPlus talks to three of the many artists from India who are showcasing their work at World Art Dubai this year:
Art and architecture: Amrish Malvankar
“Lines, symmetries and even the asymmetries reflect an architectural influence in my work,” says Bengaluru-based artist Amrish Malvankar. “My art is more a composition of colours as opposed to form. As I am not a professionally trained artist, my abstracts come from my background of graphic design and architecture.”
Artist Amrish Malvankar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Despite there being artists from his father’s side of the family, Amrish says there was a big break for two generations as it was not a viable career option. “I also enjoyed architecture so I enrolled at Sir JJ College in Mumbai as it had both streams. Once I turned professional, art became a hobby,” he says, talking from his home in the outskirts of Bengaluru.
While work was stressing him out, Amrish says his wife, Tarunjeet, thought his art was exhibition-worthy. With her encouragement he held his first show where he sold 35 of the 42 canvases he had displayed. “That was the boost I needed and I’ve been a full time artist since 2009.”
World Art will see around 17 of Amrish’s works on display. “After a break of almost 10 years, I am back to creating figurative work with my added experience of abstracts,” says the artist, known for his large canvases. “The smallest of my works are four by four, though I do have two feet by two feet ones. For this event, seven of my works are large artworks — four feet by six feet, three by six and four by eight feet.”
Amrish works with acrylics for the most part as they allow for “layering of colours in a short amount of time,” as well other media such as coal and oil.
Follow @amrishmalvankar on Instagram for more details of his work.
Travel diaries: Niyati Parekh
For aerospace engineer Niyati Parekh from Gujarat, a passion for art trumped anything else in terms of a career. “Even while I was in college, I would craft handmade products and after graduation I began working with interior design,” says Niyati, talking from her home in Rajkot.
Artist Niyati Parekh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The self-taught artist prefers mixed media to work with. “I use textures, wood, tiles, clay and canvas to create wall art. However, in Rajkot, there aren’t too many opportunities to exhibit and mixed media is not well received here. When I explored other avenues in cities such as Mumbai, galleries were quite happy with my work, so I kept at it.”
A few years ago when Niyati and her husband were in Dubai for a property expo as part of their interior design business, they attended a World Art exhibition. “We felt it was a great opportunity to showcase my work and we met with their representative who procures art from India and felt my work suited their profile.”
Niyati will be displaying around 17 of her works at World Art, all of which were created exclusively for this show. “Most of my works for this show are small in scale with the largest being about four by four. Each piece was done in a period of six to eight months.”
The wonderful places she sees on her travels inspire her, says the artist. “Whenever we go some place and I like the overall ambience, I enjoy converting them into miniature works of art. The places you see in my art are locales I have visited at some point and have been influenced from my original journey.”
A wall art miniature by artist Niyati Parekh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“For instance, when we were visiting Udaipur in Rajasthan, we came upon this street from which you could get a complete view of the palace. It was quite lovely, so I thought I could recreate it as a miniature,” she says.
Apart from wall art Niyati works with installations too, but will not be displaying any of them at this edition of World Art.
Check out @shadesandstylesdesignstudio on Instagram for more examples of her work.
Fascination with faces: Dhiraj Khandelwal
Dhiraj Khandelwal’s family tells him he could capture faces even as a toddler. “Apparently, when I was around three years old, I saw a picture of Amitabh Bachchan in a magazine and sketched a pretty good likeness of the actor. I don’t remember this incident; I doubt I even knew who he was then, but my mother, sister and others attest to this incident,” says Dhiraj.
Colours of Love by artist Dhiraj Khandelwal | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Despite his apparent talent, life as an artist was never on the cards for Dhiraj, as “it was more of a hobby and not a real career option”. He enrolled at the International Institute of Fashion Technology in Delhi and eventually landed a job in an advertising agency where he could put some of his creativity to work.
Originally from Jodhpur, Dhiraj relocated to Jaipur after his marriage and for a short while worked on creating cover designs for books, before getting into building construction. “In 2014, I could no longer hold back the urge to paint full time and I finally heeded the call of art,” he says, adding how it took his family some time to adjust to his lifestyle change.
Dhiraj Khandelwal | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“There is always one person in a group who stands out — man or woman. Their face, gestures and postures fascinate you and though we may not show it outwardly, we are captivated by them,” says the self-taught artist whose preferred medium is oil paint.
Of course, he adds, Indian women are among the most beautiful, consistently winning titles on the world stage. “It is not just their pretty faces; their struggles and challenges are also reflected in the face of a woman, making them interesting subjects,” he says over phone from Jaipur.
Dhiraj who has been following World Art on social media since 2017, is thrilled to be exhibiting 12 of his works with them this year. “I am constantly creating irrespective of sales or exhibitions. As soon as one canvas is done I start on the next,” he says, adding that he handpicked these pieces from his collection to showcase them in Dubai.
Follow Dhiraj on Instagram @artist_dhiraj27 or @artistdhiraj2024 to see his work
Muntazir by artist Dhiraj Khandelwal | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
MP07 KA 1881 by artist Dhiraj Khandelwal | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
A wall art miniature by artist Niyati Parekh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
A wall art miniature by artist Niyati Parekh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
A wall art miniature by artist Niyati Parekh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
A wall art miniature by artist Niyati Parekh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Energy by artist Amrish Malvankar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Serenity 2 by artist Amrish Malvankar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
