Showcasing myriad forms on women on canvas

Mostly, the field of painting is dominated by artists who are men. We have a Picasso, Ravi Varma, et al, but there must have been a few women in the field too, still, they couldn’t garner popularity as their male counterparts. However, with the wheel of time, the things have changed for better. Koutarapu Parvathi, who hails from Tenali, the Paris of Andhra, followed her passion to paint and also, she is imparting her skills to the aspiring artists. 

She is the better half of reputed poet Jugash Vili (his nom de plume). Parvathi honed her skills from Adella Hanumantha Rao, an artist of great repute. She completed her degree in Fine Arts and later, she took up a job as a drawing teacher at Hindu College High School, Guntur. Since then she has been a guide and mentor to many young students. For her feat, she received ‘Best Teacher Award’ by the AP government in 2008.

Her works are awe-inspiring; however, she does not believe in sending her paintings to any competitions. She showcases her arts in workshops and tries to help the budding artists. When asked why she doesn’t participate in competitions, she just laughs and says, ‘‘I am more inclined towards participating in workshops as it gives me more satisfaction in sharing my art with the aspiring artists.” 

She has been featured on Vietnam TV in 2012 and recently Telugu news channel HMTV aired her interview about her paintings. Parvathi recently participated in an art workshop in Egypt. She has made her mark in many art expos in and around the State, across India and the globe. Parvathi has drawn beautiful sketches for the book ‘Poornamma’, an English translation of ‘Devipriya’ written by the doyen of Telugu literature Gurajada. Her drawings have added beauty to the text. 

A simple woman in life and art, she always keeps a low profile. She uses watercolours and also dabbles with oil paintings. Apart from painting Parvathi does sculpting too.The theme of her paintings is women in myriad forms. She showcases a woman in all the phases of life, who strive and dissolves herself in the family and society, a woman who is an overall power, is expressed in her art with a great colour scheme. 

Her paintings have been sold to art lovers in the USA and in India too. A woman with a sweet gentle smile and powerful brush in her hand is a pride to our womenfolk for there are few women who choose this profession. From April 1 to 12 she is taking part in an art exhibition in Italy.
- The writer is an author, translator and critic.