Copied again!!

And so it happens again!
What is it with Lakme Fashion Week designers and my work inspiring them a tad too much? First it was The Kathakali face from the top of this trunk… now it is the Theyyam face of the top of this one!

It is interesting that the ‘lady’ in question posted her piece, at least on Facebook, on July 18th 2012 and I showcased the same in Nov 2010 at the PageTurners exhibition. It has since been published in many newspapers and magazines.

(This image is taken from Rang Decor – my friend Archana Srinivas’s blog)

Judge for your self. But I have to give this ‘lady’ some credit… at least she tried to change it up a little 🙂 I wonder though if she realized that there are specific brush strokes I did across this piece for a reason or the significance of the zebra stripes in black or even the twirls in the top band. Did she realize that the green little strokes on the bottom band are done with the side of a brush?

On a more serious note – inspiring someone to better their own skills and visual vocabulary is one thing, blatant copying quite another. It makes me feel connected to another soul that they were so moved by a piece of mine that they felt compelled to add their own interpretation to it. But using it as is… where is the artistic merit in that?

My advice – take an idea and weave your own emotions through it, put your thoughts and feelings in there, connect to that ‘inspiring’ piece and add your life experiences to it and then see what you come up with. That is what makes art worth pursuing.