Artist Spotlight: Nikita Gurnani paints emotions

January 29, 2010

Shelmi Liang

Senior Nikita Gurnani has been expressing herself through art for as long as she can remember. It began when her dad purchased a set of expensive paints and an easel from Costco. But it was not until the fourth grade that she started to paint and draw on a regular basis as an outlet for her thoughts and feelings.

For Gurnani, making art has always been a little like keeping a diary. People and faces are her main focuses in her art.

“I guess I do traditional art since I mainly use paint canvas or pen/pencil on paper because I don’t really enjoy making digital art,” Gurnani said.

When she feels angry, sad or happy, Gurnani paints something that expresses that emotion. When she feels mad she will paint things that express her anger, such as fire or broken things. When she is happy she will paint things that she likes, such as cupcakes. If she is sad she will use lots of depressing colors. For Gurnani, there are a variety of ways to express a certain feeling.

“You just kind of know what it is when you are feeling it and have a paintbrush in hand,” Gurnani said.

Gurnani is often inspired by music, people, poetry and books. She discovers the beauty within ugly and scary things and uses it as a basis for her artwork.

However, Gurnani strongly opposes censorship in the arts.

“Sometimes art can be inappropriate, but art that has offensive material is art made with raw honesty; it is so human and real it should not be censored,” Gurnani said.

Gurnani believes that art should be displayed to encourage people to express themselves and not hide or think that what they feel is wrong.

“If [the art] offends someone, who cares? That is just the way you feel and you shouldn’t have to apologize for that,” Gurnani said.

In the near-future, Gurnani hopes to go to art school to pursue her passion in art. She wants to major in illustration and fine arts so she can continue doing what she loves and learn how to use her passion to obtain a satisfying career.

Gurnani does not care if people do not understand her art. She is shy about her artwork sometimes, so she does not force anyone to look at her art. But, she feels accomplished when people admire her art and even better when people ask her if she can paint something for them or if they can buy her artwork. To Gurnani, creating art is a rewarding experimence; it is cool when people appreciate it, even if they do not “understand” it.

Tags: Gurnani, Nikita Gurnani

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