The Beacon - November 2023
Editorial Team : Harini Thiagarajan, Anishka Gogoi, Anvika Bheemarasetty
The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery. —Francis Bacon
〰️
The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery. —Francis Bacon 〰️
Young Artists Showcase at Seattle Center
Recent Highlights
Microsoft Workshops
Deepti Designs is honored to have been invited to Microsoft for numerous workshops. Below are reports on the three recent events that took place in the Microsoft headquarters in Redmond.
October 20th
Every year, Microsoft runs a Give Program where they match donations of time and money by employees to various non-profit organizations. On October 20th, Deepti Designs visited Microsoft to run a workshop, where the time employees took to participate was donated back to the Wind Beneath the Wings, the non-profit arm of Deepti Designs.
The 30 employees who participated got an introduction to Madhubani art, learned about philanthropy efforts to create a sustained source of income for underprivileged traditional artists in India, and got to decorate keepsake bookmarks and coasters! The event was hosted by Ms. Viji Viswanathan and the C&AI commerce team, conducted by teaching artist Nikita Thakalath, and was supported by the youth teaching artist Anvika Bheemarasetty. As Ms. Viji Viswanathan said, “It was truly a fantastic morning filled with art and GIVING.”
October 25th
On October 25th, Deepti Designs held an event at Microsoft where Microsoft employees got a chance to try their hands at Madhubani art. They decorated bookmarks, coasters, and photo frames as keepsake art pieces. The template guides made by our digital design team were seasonal, with both Halloween and Diwali-inspired designs which the employees enjoyed working with. Thank you to Ms. Nikita Thakalath and Ms. Annapoorni Panchap for volunteering and running the event!
October 27th
Our third event at Microsoft in the month of November was organized in their Building 83, where over 40 employees participated with great enthusiasm. The event saw the employees showcasing their creative skills by making a variety of coasters and bookmarks.
The end results were remarkable, with over 25+ pieces being donated to the care team at Providence clinic in Everett, as Diwali gifts. The employees felt an immense sense of satisfaction knowing that their efforts were going towards making a difference in the lives of the healthcare workers who work tirelessly on the frontlines in rain or shine.
Overall, it was a great initiative that brought together the employees and helped them contribute towards a noble cause. Thanks to Mahima Kolar for volunteering at the event.
KCLS Lakehills Library - Grain Rangoli Workshop
To celebrate the Diwali festivities, Deepti Designs held a grain rangoli workshop at the KCLS Lakehills Library.
The event was held on October 21st, where volunteers Ms. Annapoorni Panchap, Srinidhi Kodemala, and Rama Panchap helped guide participants in making ornate rangoli squares using grains and lentils.
Guests chose between either a floral or Ganesha design templates and also took home a clay diya as an extra festive touch.
Srinidhi displayed her Ram Sita and Buddha projects and gave a talk on the latter. The participants gave great feedback and expressed their delight in learning about the art, the story of Buddha and creating grain-rangolis as take-home keep-sakes!
Everett Library
On Oct 28th, Everett Library held an event for Diwali where Ms. Deepti Agrawal was invited to present a Diya Plaque workshop.
There were 17 participants who participated in the event, learnt about Diwali as a festival of lights and decorated a diya plaque. It served as a great keepsake for participants to take home, along with an actual diya and tealight candle. The participants were from diverse backgrounds who came together to learn the Indian heritage art and know more about the holiday.
They enjoyed learning about the stories behind the Hindu festival and indulged in practicing the meditative art of Madhubani Painting. The event was supported by teaching artist, Ms. Nikita Thakalath and student artist, Shriya Shaji.
Seattle Art Museum
The Seattle Art Museum reached out to Deepti Designs to host an art workshop for their Diwali Fun Family Event on November 4th.
A unique feature of this workshop was that while the participants got to work on and take home a decorated diya, they also experienced the practice of community art which is traditional to the art of Madhubani Painting.
They community worked together to fill in colors in the pre-prepped mural boards and enjoyed the camaraderie while painting. This was a great way to have people outside the studio try Madhubani art while also playing a part in creating something something bigger and more meaningful.
Youth artists Anurgraha Ganesh, Mahima Kolar, Aadya Bommineni, and Oviya Raja participated in an art-showcase and also presented their paintings on stage. Additionally, there was Diwali-themed coloring pages for kids and adults alike to keep busy.
The event got coverage on King 5 News, and our very own Ms. Deepti Agarwal and Ms. Nikita Thakalath were featured in the segment! They talked about the significance and history of Diwali while showing clips from the event. Click here to read and watch the coverage!
Expedia Diwali Event
Deepti Designs was invited to layout an art table in Expedia's Diwali event, on Nov 7th. The event, held at the Expedia headquarters in Seattle, was attended by a large number of employees and their families.
At the event, Ms Nikita Thakalath represented Deepti Designs and showcased a collection of their artwork, including wooden photo frames and coasters designed in the traditional Indian art form. Many attendees stopped by the booth to appreciate the intricate designs and vibrant colors used in the paintings and were excited to learn more about Madhubani painting.
The host of the event expressed appreciation for Deepti Designs' participation, saying that the artwork brought a lot of energy and color to the celebration. Overall, it was a successful event for the studio, which continues to promote and showcase the beauty of Madhubani painting in the Pacific Northwest.
HumWA Speakers’ Bureau Program at Bothell Library
Deepti Designs was once again invited to give a talk on Madhubani Painting at the KCLS Bothell library. The event was held on November 7th, and was attended by Humanities Washington representatives, Sarah Faulkner and Tori Lopez as well!
Ms. Deepti Agarwal, along with artists Prisha Mundra, Harini Thiagarajan, and Guhan Thiagarajan presented at the event, with Ms. Deepti Agarwal giving some background on the art form and Prisha, Harini, and Guhan presenting their Kohbar, Hanuman’s Quest, and elephant paintings respectively. There was a hands-on activity planned as well where the guest could try Madhubani art themselves and made a keepsake art piece to take home.
Annual Youth Art Showcase at Seattle Center
Deepti Designs recently held its annual Young Artists Showcase at the Seattle Center Armory on November 11th. This is the school’s primary showcase of most of the students’ artworks. The exhibition also forms a part of Seattle Center’s Diwali - Lights of India celebration.
This year, 43 artists displayed their projects in the gallery, with the number of artworks totaling to around 100! Each student gave a short speech on one of their favorite paintings and answered questions in a QnA session that was followed by the presentation. There was an activity table where guests could participate in color-by-number sheets or make small and simple art pieces. The table was bubbling with action and fun throughout the event and was a huge hit with the younger kids.
There was a felicitation ceremony where the artists who have gone beyond their call of duty in using traditional art as an instrument to stimulate positive change in the society, were recognized. Ms. Nicole McDonald, the Arts and Culture Strategist with City of Redmond, Ms. Nani Trias, the Museum Educator for Families at Seattle Art Museum and Mrs. Manjula Mohanraj, a distinguished violinist and musician graced our event and handed out certificates and awards. The Presidential Volunteer Service Awards for year 2022-23 were given to the eligible artists, in the ceremony. The Kindness Crew Artists, Mentors of Creative Voices, Editors of The Beacon and Digital Team members along with some special recognition awards were given at the event. Adults artists and mentors who have contributed and helped in treading the path towards our mission also got recognized. We applaud everyone for their hard work and special thanks to Nethra Mahesh for being master of the ceremony for the entire event!
Award Recipients:
PVSA:
Gold: Anvika Bheemarasetty, Aadya Bommineni, Arianna Sinha
Silver: Varsha Subramaniam, Nikita Thakalath
Bronze: Siyona Rao, Kriya Rajpal, Ananya Vaidyaraman, Deepthi Sunder Rajan
Newsletter: Harini Thiagarajan, Anishka Gogoi, Anvika Bheemrasetty
Kindness Crew: Aadya Bommineni, Anugraha Ganesh, Anvitha Babu, Arianna Sinha, Bhargavi Mannepalli, Kriya Rajpal, Riya Subramaniam, Ruthvi Subramaniam, Sanika Kabbur, Shritha Kotapalle, Varsha Subramanian
Digital Art Creator: Ananya Vaidyaraman, Anvika Bheemarasetty, Mahima Kolar, Meenakshi Iyer, Yashvy Patni
Creative Voices: Aadya Bommineni, Khushi Garg, Mahima Kolar
Special Recognition: Rama Panchap, Annapoorni Panchap, Srinidhi Kodemala
Adults Special Recognition :
Excellence in Administration - Shilpa Sherigar
Excellence in Service - Vidhya Durai and Deepthi Suner Rajan
Art Ambassador - Nikita Thakalath
Upcoming Events
&
Opportunities
Seattle Art Museum Mural Post-Production in Studio
The Seattle Art Museum’s community mural is now available in our studio for the post-production work. If interested, please stop by during hours of class to work on it. Parents, siblings over 12 and artists are welcome to contribute. All hours would count towards PVSA. The hours of operations are
Monday and Wednesday - 5-7pm
Thursday - 5-6pm
Bellevue Library
Date: December 2nd
Time: 3 - 4.30pm
Location: Bellevue Library
Discover the fascinating world of Madhubani Painting an ancient Indian visual art form, by designing your wooden photo frames and coasters, with Deepti Designs. You'll delve into the art's rich history and learn how it has empowered rural communities for generations. Take home your unique creations as a cherished memento of this cultural experience, perfect for decorating your home this holiday season. This workshop is on December 2nd in Bellevue Library and is suitable for individuals aged 10 and up.
If interested in volunteering, please reach out to Ms. Nikita Thakalath soon. Here is the event link
Vyakhya Blog Launch
We are happy to launch Vykahya, an art blog led by Aadya Bommineni and Aradhna Praveen. The blog would feature three artists per month. The paintings and descriptions would be showcased which would conform to the topic of the month which would further be categorized by the quarters.
The first month of each quarter will feature three paintings with the same idea or concept represented or relating to a holiday or a cultural festival of the month. The second month will showcase three different paintings, and the third month will have the three students feature their favorite art-works.
Interested students can send their paintings and descriptions vial email and choose the theme they want to participate in. Vykahya aims to give everyone who volunteers for this at least one chance per quarter. The selected students will attend meetings during scheduled times and follow strict deadlines to submit their paintings and captions. This is a great opportunity for young artists to showcase their work and get exposure on a public platform. So let’s start rolling. Please click on the tab below to learn more and participate.
Featured Article
Ms. Reema Roy has reflected on her experiences as a mom of a budding Madhubani artist and how her child benefits from learning about her culture. Read the perspective below:
“Learning Madhubani art at Deepti Designs has been a very rewarding experience for our daughter Mahima in multiple ways. Deepti has designed a thorough curriculum for her students where they progress from simple to complex paintings, emerging as skilled Madhubani artists by the end of the course. For Mahima, the Madhubani art lessons at Deepti Designs have allowed her to hone her artistic skills, enhance her creativity and boost her confidence as a budding artist. An aspect of her Madhubani art that Mahima finds particularly meaningful is how it allows her to connect with the maternal and paternal aspects of her cultural and religious heritage. Sharing this heritage art form with her friends and teachers has also given her a way to represent her culture and background in a positive way. This is something we, as parents, value deeply as well, given that it can be difficult to stay connected to one’s roots when living outside of India. In addition to art, Mahima has always loved public speaking. The multiple volunteering and public speaking opportunities at Deepti Designs have been instrumental in helping her practice and grow these skills. As I am sure other parents will testify, this is perhaps one of the least expected but most appreciated benefits of the course!”
Featured Artists
This month’s featured artists are Aashi Sherigar and Guhan Thiagarajan. These two young artists have worked hard on their paintings and have a little bit to say about them.
Aashi Sherigar
Let's hear from Aashi, one of our younger artists. “My name is Aashi Sherigar and I am in 5th grade at Maywood Hills Elementary. I think this project was my most detailed and creative one yet. I really got to test my artistic abilities with this project.”
Guhan Thiagarajan
Now let's hear from Guhan, “Hello, My name is Guhan Thiagarajan and I am a 9th grader at North Creek High School. My favorite part of the project is the shawl because it contains a lot of detail.” Congratulations to these artists!
ActivityTime
Word Search : Please find and circle the following words from the maze
Jhitiki
Mithila
Ramayana
Kachni
Double-lining
Bharni
Madhubani
Please send us a screenshot of the word search solution at newsletter.thebeacon.dd@gmail.com to get featured in our next edition.
