Instagram has not only provided a platform for creators and artists to share and promote their work, but it has also enabled them to experiment with their art and carve a niche out for themselves. It is on social media, specifically Instagram, where Coimbatore-based Pavithra Kannusamy found her calling — she posts photos of her miniature watercolours on canvas, which are only 9 cm in height by 6 cm in length. And she did this during the lockdown, which is when she could finally find the time to paint again.
Telling us why she paints miniatures, Pavithra says, "I wanted to try something unique and creative, and the lockdown gave me the time to experiment with something new. I started painting miniatures and posted a few on my Instagram account, which was private then. After receiving positive responses from my friends, I decided to make my profile public." Pavithra was motivated to continue painting miniatures after being publicly appreciated for her art. It was on her brother's insistence that she started posting her work on social media in the first place. "I used to paint earlier, whenever I got some free time, but now I am able to do it more regularly due to the lockdown," she adds.
Talking about her artistic growth, she says, "I used to gift my paintings to friends and relatives but ever since I started posting on Instagram, I have been able to contact other artists and learn from them, I've been inspired to paint more." She adds, "Initially, I used to paint only landscapes but since getting on Instagram, I have started experimenting more, like participating in challenges, which has helped me push my boundaries." The 26-year-old confesses that she still finds it challenging to bring florals and seascapes to life.
Speaking about her inspirations, Pavithra says, "I try to recreate certain posts that I have seen on Pinterest and even several photographs taken by the photographers I follow." Pavithra began painting when she was in fourth standard. "My father quickly realised that I liked to paint. He used to get newspaper cutouts and asked me to paint them. I began watercolours at an early age," says Pavithra, who has an MBA in Finance from Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore and even worked at a private bank. But it was her bachelor's degree in Fashion Technology from Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore, that finally helped her land a job in a design studio, where she could let her creative juices flow while creating prints and patterns for fabric.
You can check out her artwork on her Instagram page @pavithra_kannusamy
Some of her other artworks:
