Akanksha Dhepe, an upcoming and talented artist , is fascinated by every little thing and creature in nature .

The artist builds on the forms she sees, imagines, visualizes and perceives in her mind and in the surroundings. Nature that procreates and self-sustains itself; even the stones that change in color, forms and look, fascinate her. Her creations on canvas and on paper are interplay of fascinating forms

She reconstructs them in her visual landscape, and conjures them up on canvas in a particular context. The forms in her ‘Evolution’ series capture the expressions of an unborn baby, the warmth felt, the mixed emotions of pain and joy.

Akanksha Dhepe’s  black and white works capture the intriguing forms of a living being cocooned inside the safe abode of a womb. She explores the relationship between an embryo and a womb and the way it evolves myriad physical forms and emotional bonds.

Her works are suffused with subtle exploration of the evolutionary aspect of existence that is intrinsic to nature and to her work. “There is life in everything even in the stones that I encounter when I visit caves all over India. The forms I paint are full of life, too”, she reveals.

The artist tracks the process of evolution symbolized by a mother’s womb, which to her has provided some fluid forms and curves to play with, bearing the sensitiveness of a growing life. She adds texture to our understanding of the form of prenatal life and offers a captivating view of a soothing space that harbors a new soul.

The forms she paints reflect the bond and attachment that an unborn baby and the mother share with each other. She tries to map and interpret the space and the bond shared by the two, trying to portray a state of ultimate bliss that the budding life experiences, while being in communion with oneself and the creator. As an artist, she looks for the same state of bliss and fulfillment, while portraying these forms.

To put it in Akanksha Dhepe’s words, “I am depicting cycle of procreation which is omnipresent in nature. Seeds germinate, flowers pollinate. Every object in nature multiplies itself, which is a wonderful phenomenon. The ability of a seed to become a plant and grow into a blooming plant and then a mature tree is a miracle.

“An embryo comes to life, grows and develops itself into a complete individual. For me, a mother’s womb is an extension of this cycle of evolution – a symbol that I have selected to sum up the essence of the nature’s amazing ability to replicate life and life forms, she states.

Born in 1981, Akanksha Dhepe completed her Diploma in Fine Art in year 2004 from Abhinav Kala Mahavidyalaya, Pune, Maharashtra. Her work features in many collections in India and abroad, including Assembly of Artists and Writers, Alexandria, Egypt; Dott.ssa Paola Carrus, Cagliari, Italy and PUPRA Centre of Art and Culture, Prague. Among her prominent international participations include The 11th International Biennial Print and Drawing Exhibition at Taiwan Museum of Art, Taiwan (2004) and at PUPRA Centre of Art and Culture, Prague (2003).

The budding artist visited Alexandria, Egypt to take part in the AAW (Assembly of Artists and Writers) Workshop. She was invited for the unique event that provided her an opportunity to work with international visual artists and share her thoughts, culture, and ideas at the studio of AAW.

Akanksha Dhepe terms her work as a reflection of her thought processes. It’s akin to a projection of her expressions, impressions and perceptions. She opts to express herself through fluid forms, and believes, once an artist gets the form right, the subject matter unfolds itself. She chooses to work in black and white because she does not want colors to deviate the user from the subject matter. She would rather wish that viewers ‘see’ and ‘feel’ the forms.