Brushing away autism stereotypes

Link to article: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/brushing-away-autism-stereotypes/articleshow/62226187.cms

PANAJI: Sanjna Srikanth, a young Bengaluru-based artist, is like no other girl her age. She has been raising money for charities through the sale of her paintings from the time she was only a teenager. Sanjna’s paintings have toured the World Economic Forum, and, in 2014, she received the International Diana award from the British prime minister, given in recognition of young people.

Sanjna is also unlike most other 21-year-olds. She has achieved all this while living with communication challenges diagnosed as being caused by autism.

In Goa as part of her fourth solo exhibition, on display at Kala Academy, Sanjna’s strong line-drawing and bright colours appears like the marriage of the pop art and cubism movements. In a unique twist, most artworks have been displayed alongside a sculptural interpretation of the painting – which have been sculpted by Sanjna’s teacher, Vinod Shahapure.

The artist was born to Jayashree and Srikanth (from Chennai) when the couple was based in the USA. “Everyday is a challenge for Sanjna, but from a young age she has been determined to inspire her peers to be their best,” says her mother.

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Braving hurdles, Sanjna dabbles in art

Link to article: http://www.navhindtimes.in/braving-hurdles-sanjna-dabbles-in-art/

21-year-old Bangalore-based Sanjna Srikanth will be exhibiting her works at Kala Academy on December 23 and December 24. NT Kuriocity gets an insight into her art and life

Janice Savina Rodrigues | NT Kuriocity

Sanjna Srikanth’s penchant for colours and eye for art was discovered approximately the same time she was diagnosed with autism. For her parents her affinity to art came as a lifesaver as it gave her a boost in every aspect of life. Born and raised in USA, her parents thought it best to educate her by means of homeschooling and part time regular schooling, a system followed in the western countries quite often.

“When we moved to India, I decided to follow the same system here, and enrolled her for part time schooling in the Bangalore International School, while continuing with the home schooling programme with the Learning Community International School, Maryland, USA, where she graduated from high school in June 2015,” says Jayshree, Sanjna’s mother.

Jayshree says that it was once Sanjna was in Bangalore that her talent was spotted and groomed by the school and its teachers. Since then, she has been under the tutelage of art teachers Dodamani, Malamma Pal and Vinodh Shahpuri. Sanjna is good with computers and she has successfully even secured a Diploma in 3D animation, from the Picasso Animation College, Bangalore. She also began to grow more confident and her overall development too saw a lot of improvement with her involvement in art.

Sanjna’s love for colours comes off vividly in her art; her art is spontaneous and has an innocence that is characteristic of a young mind. “Earlier she was fascinated with faces, so she would draw a lot of portraits and still life with people, but of late her art has shifted to that of stripes and abstract art objects using a lot of colours,” says Jayshree. For her creative works Sanjna relies on mediums like pencil, charcoal, dry pastel, oil pastel, though she says she doesn’t like oil paints much, but loves to dabble with new media as and when she gets the chance.

She has had three spool exhibitions in the past, the first being when she was just 16 when she had over 40 artworks on display and on sale, the proceeds of which went to the Sunshine Autism School, Bangalore.

The exhibition in Kala Academy will also have sculptures based on Sanjna’s artworks, done by her art teacher Vinodh Shahpuri.

Sanjna will be exhibiting her works on December 23 and December 24 at Kala Academy Art Gallery.

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