What a joy to meet once again—to experience
Sarla Chandra’s deep artistic commitment
to India’s treasures of philosophy, mythology
and culture. She puts light and energy onto
canvas with insight and inspiration manifesting
her own deep love of God, Nature and
Man...a yoga that is both natural as well as
wondrous, fresh as well as eternal.
—Srimati Kamala, May 2007
SARLA CHANDRA, born in 1943, is a Science post graduate from St.John’s College,
Agra, India. She is a talented artist, who has been painting for the best part of 40
years, often combining her works with her studies of Indian philosophy, mythology and
scripture. It is her unparalleled knowledge of these subjects that she manifests onto the
canvas. Painting for Sarla Chandra is a form of meditation, where she can study ontology.
Her paintings are a personal expression of her love for Indian culture and mythology.
Hers is an art of hope, peace and self-realization.
Sarla has experimented with different mediums — oil, watercolors, metal embossing,
parchment, tree bark, special hand made silver and gold foil. Her use of gold and silver
foil on canvas is an unorthodox technique that recreates the aura of India’s ancient
cultural heritage. Lavanya (decoration) and Gati (rhythm) are some of the finer elements
of her stylization. Not only does she capture her thoughts and imageries, but with the
help of bold lines and strokes she utilizes the foil for better texture. Her brush generates
energy, drawing inspirations from all faces of nature, and multifarious traditions such
as Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufism, and Christianity. This energy pulsates through all
forms of her work linking them together in one ‘dance of life till ecstasy.’ No matter
what her subject, it seems that her inner eye is always open to the subtle beauty and rich
colors of the natural world around her.
Oriented towards philosophy, her paintings incline in the direction of mythical subjects.
Rightly hailed as ‘a thinking, bold and experimental artist’, she has held more
than 45 solo exhibitions in India and abroad. Sarla has traveled extensively to Europe,
USA, Far East and the Middle East. Her group shows include Harmony Shows, ‘India
With Art’ in London and Washington DC, and other exhibitions at the International
Center, New York, The World Bank, Washington DC, Vedic Heritage, New York, The
Art Gallery, London, and Taj Art Gallery, Mumbai, as well as with private art collectors
in India and abroad.
Sarla Chandra is one of the most exciting and intellectual artists in India today. She is
not easily influenced by other styles but creates her own, which in turn allows each
admirer to take home their own interpretation. Her ability to discuss the complexities
and paradoxes of life through art is a rare talent. Each of her paintings creates a spiritual
experience for the viewers, a universal understanding of the human. Her works are never
static. Every form or delineation can be said to pulsate with Prana, speaking through
natural elements. “I am engaged in a continuing search not only of the self but of the
roots of creation in its cosmic display.” —Sarla Chandra