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Bharatanatyam; More Than a Hobby?
I had a performance recently. I had some crazy revelations recently. Coincidence? I think not! I am a Bharatanatyam dancer. I have been for 19 years and counting, as quite honestly, it’s one of my greatest achievements. I love the nuanced movements and subtle meanings behind each gesture. There’s a strange sense of both erratic euphoria and meditative tranquility involved that’s hard to describe. It’s one of those things that I’ve been doing for so long that it has become a permanent fixture in my life. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed something, Bharatanatyam is no longer that weird ethnic extra-curricular activity it once was. The movements that are…
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Review : Dawnthief, James Barclay
Earlier this year, I read the fantasy novel Dawnthief, the first novel (of three) in The Raven Chronicles by James Barclay. I have a video on this topic if you are interested below! If I was to give it a score out of a hundred, it would be 82! Pretty good I say. All in all, the novel features a lovely blend of fantasy action and adventure, complete with a quest to the save the country. The excellent, almost “Avengers” or “Justice League”, ensemble-like team dynamic of the Raven are a real treat for fantasy lovers who yearn for deep interactions and banter-heavy adventures. But what really sets this world…
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The Communist Manifesto; Life Lessons and Epiphanies?
Ok, I was genuinely interested in the ideas and thoughts behind the Communist ideology so I decided to read it a while back. I finished the surprisingly short tome a few weeks ago and boy I’ve been stewing over it for a while! In perfect 20/20 hindsight, I wish I had taken more notes and really delved into the deeper ideas but that would take forever, so here are my thoughts on it, from the perspective of a political and economic layman. First up, the text is pretty dry and a heftier read then it looks. The actual manifesto written by Marx and Engels consists of only approximately 15% of…
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Is “bad art” really that bad?
I’ve been thinking a great deal about “bad art” lately. It seems in this world of technology, communication and social media, every thing HAS to be perfect. Every Instagram profile has refined works of art and YouTube channels portray amazing time-lapse paintings. What we don’t see is on social media is probably the most important thing aspiring creatives need to see, failure. Sure, you’ll see a clickbait title with the word FAIL plastered across it, but often these videos are made in jest and don’t seem to address the real issue of failure. Even people who show their sketchbooks, have the pages filled with rendered illustrations instead of the chicken…
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Exposure and Experience: 5 tips to be a better creator.
Okay… I’ll be honest with you, I wasn’t very good at creative pursuits 5 years ago. I loved painting and dancing but I wasn’t creative. It took me a while, but I feel that I’ve gotten better, not only technically but also in expressing creatively. While these are mostly related to the visual arts, particularly painting, I believe many of these tips can be applied to any expressive or creative art form, be it performing or even technological innovation. Physical Exposure is the KeyPrior to 5 years ago, I had only physically been to a gallery once – to see a Salvador Dali exhibition. Now, I take time out…
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Travelling and nostalgia.
I generally despise travelling and I have a strong tendency towards homesickness but an interesting discovery has been made about leaving the regular workspace that makes uncomfortable travel, less so. I am currently travelling in Fiji, the home of my parents and I’ve come to realise one thing, the paintings that I produce away from home emanate a strange and intriguing feeling, that cannot be replicated at home. Perhaps it is the nostalgic and almost hazy feeling that my preferred travel medium, watercolours, gives off to the viewer. The transparent hues and loose brush strokes that produce a blurred, indistinct image, as if looking through a foggy lens, is made…
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Aquaman, a breath of fresh sea breeze.
Today, I saw Aquaman. It was full of amazing characters and wonderful action scenes but most of all, I saw what I believe to one of the greatest means of creative expression – aesthetics. Man! This movie was so visually appealing! As a great lover and admirer of the sea, it was so refreshing to see(sea haha!) the way the director James Wan envisioned life under the ocean. The film presented a perfect merge of comic book visual accents and vivid, child-like imagination, complete with glowing jellyfish, riding on seahorses, meditating amongst manta rays and the sunken city of Atlantis. There is a certain way the colours and figures move…
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Creativity as a tool for the introvert.
I am a textbook introvert, give me two hours of socialising and I’m knackered. Over the past few months of soul searching, what I’ve realised is that this introversion has often been the underlying catalyst for my ideas and inspirations. Generally, an introvert is one who gains energy by spending time alone and tends to feel tired after a certain amount of socialising. In spending time alone, I often find that my mind is buzzing with ideas and interesting revelations that socialising simply cannot replicate. I believe this harks back to the comfort and emotional freedom introverts have when alone. These “shower thoughts” acts a means for the introvert to…
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Beowulf – the classic hero.
Having just finished the prose version of the classic poem, Beowulf, it leads me to wonder about the implications and effects of the poem itself. Originating in an era of rich oral tradition and in consideration of the limitations of literacy amongst members of that society, it is easy to see why the text comes across as difficult to understand today. It also raises a discussion of the poem’s significance both at the time of creation and the modern day. Beowulf is the tale of the classic hero, following the archetype of a daring, strong, adventuring prince in search of glory. The oral tradition of the poem allows it to…
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Hello world!
Ah yes! The classic opening to any programming language, and as someone with an understanding of programming, I too, shall begin this creative journey with a “Hello World!”.
