Saturday, December 29, 2012

Coverage by DNA, a national daily :)

DNA Feature! 
http://epaper.dnaindia.com/epapermain.aspx?pgNo=5&edcode=820004&eddate=2012-12-30
Wearable Art - Sananya Chavda
"Adding a quirky touch to boring footwear is 20-year-old Karan Vohra, an engineering student with a flair for the fine arts. The student who started off by designing for himself, began taking orders for shoe art about a year ago, and when he’s not using footwear as his medium, he works on book/journal covers and paintings in charcoal, oil pastels, and acrylics. “My shoes may be considered a style statement but to me it’s another way of exposing people to art. Before starting I spend time interacting with the customer finding out his/her likes and dislikes, inspirations and so on,” says Karan, whose first design was of Argentinian leader Che Guevara. Some of his other works include those based on pop icons Madonna, Pink Floyd, Britney Spears and even the television show The Simpsons.
“The colours are important, infact I think they often speak more than the illustrations. For The Simpsons shoes I used bright fresh colours like blue and orange to bring the characters to life. Even adding coloured laces can make a difference,” he says, explaining that he uses acrylic colours mixed with chemicals to ensure the designs last. Karan is clear about sticking to custom-designed footwear as for him it’s about the creativity behind each piece, and he doesn’t want it to get too commercialised.
Customers can provide the shoes and while some designs are completed in a day, others can take upto a week depending on the complexity. “One of the most challenging assignments was when a customer wanted his shoes based on singer Adele’s song Rolling In The Deep. I incorporated a few lyrics from the song, along with drawings of burning buildings, and shallow waters to capture the meaning behind it,” he says." "-Sanaya Chavda

Coverage by ww.fashionfad.in

My work was also covered by www.fashionfad.in
here is the link
http://fashionfad.in/fashion/catalogue/accessories/content/accessories.aspx?slno=212


Coverage by www.explosivefashion.in

My work is getting a lot pf buzz in the press and I thought I'd share with you all some of it. Even as all you readers, and the buzz you create means the world to me :)
Here is what http://www.explosivefashion.in/blog_post_detail.php?id=886 and Blogger Jasmeen Duggal has to say
"Do you live in denims? Well we have pairs of artfully painted shoes by twenty-year-old Karan Vohra that would jazz up your look!! His artistic bent of mind and creativity is evident in his wearable art project i.e. a collection of painted shoes. 'Art has been my window to the world. My choice of mediums depends on the strength and opacity of the feeling or situation that I am trying to express. It continuously transforms from paper to wood to walls and more recently to shoes' he explains.
Checking out his project, I sensed a whimsical flair in the silhouettes and materials. Each pair of shoes has something unexpected like fun colors or design element and though the designer would say it's intended to be worn (and it sure is!), for him it is a canvas for creating something beautiful. EF Verdict: we think the pairs are chic and functional like any other especially for the teens-twenties' age group (though we will confirm after we wear one!)."- Jameen Duggal 

Friday, December 28, 2012

What does this transgression mean ?

I find myself surrounded by 10 eyes. 10 seemingly shocked eyes, the level and nature of surprise in these eyes varies from mock stares to a sense of shocked realisation colored by defeat.

I amuse myself by thinking that these women who are present in my room in the form of art pieces keep a protective eye over me. Much like the portraits of old headmasters in the Headmasters office in the fantasy-fiction Harry Potter series, they seem to observe my actions with the infinitesimal patience of someone who is immortal. Contrary to this observatory glance is the element of wonder in their eyes, much like in those of a child.

Even as I was caught between restarting my preparation for my exam and writing about this mysterious element, my mind began to wander.I remembered how the characters in my earlier paintings had their eyes closed. This transgression from the closed eyes of the earlier works to the seemingly half open eyes - open with part shock and part wonder - seems to have some hidden meaning.This emotiveness  of the eyes seems to talk about something not only in my paintings but also in my murals and shoes.

I see that the eyes of the characters in the shoes have moved from polite astonishment to deep understanding this is also reflected in the success of these shoes ( If I may say so myself )

The murals on the other hand, a new territory have a diety who has his eyes closed too. Are these closed eyes then a symbol of ignorance or deep understanding.
Perhaps it depends from context to context.

What does this transgression mean ?




Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Have you seen our Facebook page yet ?

Dear readers,
I would like to take this post to thank you all for your support over these years, without your love and encouragement I wouldn't have been able to do whatever little I have done so far.
Continuing with my efforts I have recently published my very own Art House namely Karan Leo Arts and the facebook page for the same is www.facebook.com/karanleoarts
It would make gladden me much if you saw the page and gave your feedback
Much love :) <3

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Fallen

20"x20" Mixed Media on wood


Monday, October 1, 2012

Dear Readers.
I am pleased to give news of my artwork being featured at a rather popular and succesfull blog on Anna Calvi , my muse for some of my work .
I was interviewed and some of my work was put up on the website.
Also the Author of the website is in talks with people to put up an exhibition of works inspired by  Calvi in France . So keep your fingers crossed :)
Meanwhile an excerpt from the interview I have posted here, for more you can see the link given below
http://no-more-words-no-more-words.tumblr.com/post/31131273091/karan-vohra-india-circum-stare-who#Notes

KARAN VOHRA, India
*Circum Stare*

     Who –

Born on 22nd August 1992, art has been my passion for almost 11 years now. The ever changing spectrum of life that I encounter every day inspires me to paint. I paint what I see and perceive unconsciously. My paintings might not always be statements but they definitely show my personal journey with respect to the theme and otherwise. The themes range from explorations of human psychology (the human psyche) to journeys into India’s archetypal past. My choice of mediums depends on the strength and opacity of the feeling or situation that I am trying to express, consciously or otherwise. Ink, charcoal, oil pastels and acrylic give life to my thoughts. I am exploring digital art and hope to unlock more portals.. I am pursuing a degree in Computer Science Engineering (Currently in my third year). I hope to travel the world, absorb what all it has to offer and reflect it in my paintings for all the world to see.
My art has been exhibited at numerous places like Goethe Institut, Swiss-India alliance exhibit etc and more recently it was exhibited at
1. The Jai Bharat Centre in association with Zarah Delhi .
The theme of the exhibition was Tattva , broadly classified into Air, Earth, Fire, Water, Spirit and Shadow from 16th to 19th August 2012
2. Art  gallery called ‘Kuzart  Lane’ in Hauz Khas Village from 10th June 2012 to 24th June 2012
You can find out more about me and my art on my blog www.karanvohraart.blogspot.in .
You can contact me via my blog/facebook/twitter.


     Where & when –

A friend of mine who worked with BBC world service told me about Calvi.
The first song I ever listened to by Calvi was “Desire”. I was taken aback, thrilled to find  her .It seemed to me as if I always knew her for I could feel the madness, rage, turmoil and darkness assimilated in her music as my own, as a part of my very being sung out by a  Sorceress in a distant land. I paint only when I am truly inspired, I do not manufacture art. Her music rekindled the fire of desire.


     Why –

It seldom happens that the voice and the visual turn out to be equally powerful, equally arousing and inspiring.
Anna Calvi with her theatrics, rage, music and elements of macabre achieves that resonance between the visual and the vocal
 .
My muse through her music brought out a lot of emotions out in me. It was a vast pool where I could throw all my fury, anger, disgust, revenge, ego and yearning by being in a state of conscious exhalation. What came out was lust, courage, fear, the ability to love again and opportunity, not only as a state of mind but also existentially.Since once I painted these paintings all of the reflection came to life .
There are a lot of works inspired by Anna and her music they are
Untitled work on Wood.”
Each work has its own unique significance
I have and shall write more about each of these paintings on my blog. (*If your readers wish to read that info here itself I shall send u the same J*)  


     How –

Harp me lustless , Untitled ( carnivore 2) and  Untitled (Carnivore 3 ) are all mixed media . Using ink, acrylic and charcoal I have created the works .
Making these paintings was orgasmic, I would paint while listening to Anna’s songs at high volume. Since it was never scheduled and rather inspiration/mood dependent I painted at times by the candle light, early morning by the sun and sometimes till the late hours of darkness.
“Give Me Gray? No” is like a nemesis of Calvi a reverse image and is made entirely with Charcoal.
Both “Give me Gray? No” and “Engulf me in Darkness” were made at the spur of the moment.
While the untitled painting on wood is a black and white painting made with acrylic. 

     Song - I cannot pick one, the entire album is a piece of genius. I am not crazy about Rider to the sea but it is essential to all other songs
          Phrase - “Love won’t be leaving”
.               Word -“Devil”

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Tattva Exhibition

Hey all ,
As you all are well aware I had an exhibition at the Jai Bharat Centre in association with Zarah Delhi .
The theme of the exhibition was Tattva , broadly classified into Air, Earth, Fire, Water, Spirit and Shadow
The paintings I exhibited were called Fire and I am the torch bearer
. 
About the two paintings
Fire – 9’’X12’’
Mixed Media ( Charcoal , Ink , Oil Pastels , Acrylic ) on Acid Free Australian Made drawing paper








I Am The Torch Bearer  12’’X16’’
Mixed Media ( Charcoal , Ink , Oil Pastels , Acrylic ) on Acid free cotton content water color paper

         The Woman in these paintings is a metaphor .The moments that these two paintings capture her in, are different. She imbues the tattvas, she calls to them and derives strength from them. These paintings tell a story woven around these very tattvas .The woman is a widow born centuries before, a woman who dared to love. She has a fire burning inside of her that gives her strength to fight all odds, even as she trembles and shivers as if hit by a gust of wind and a wave of water at the same time. When society tortures her and attempts to rob her of her fiery spirit, she takes refuge in the arms of mother earth. Its waters in the form of River Ganga help her take on this journey.

     “The woman in these paintings reminds me of someone who came out the other side of the pyre, alive and beautiful and whole, young and old at once
Is this exquisite woman poised on the knife-edge of tragedy or has the knife been through her many times and blunted itself? Are those dying embers in her eyes, ashes of resignation on her lips, or does the fire have half a mind to let itself be rekindled? Her eyes could be tired from weeping, bruised from assault, or that could be the protective kohl signifying her hope and the passion that cannot be stifled. They have burned her at the stake to quell her. But what burns within her is fire too, the fire of love and daring to love. The good fire and the bad one cannot quell each other, rather they stoke each other’s flames leading to uncontrollable destruction. So she quits this war of flames and turns to Ma Ganga for healing. She escapes into the lap of the waves or maybe she chooses to be embraced, engulfed, liberated by water?
-Ms. Mayalakshmi Rao on the two paintings (Friend, Author and Art critic) 

Lines that speak about the painting – “Fire”
“Find the cost of freedom
Buried in the ground
Mother earth will swallow you
Lay your body down”- (The song is by Stephen Stills, 1970)

Lines that speak about the painting “I am the torch bearer”

“Tell me torchbearer, whose light do you hold there? 

Alone on the shore a brave wayfarer walks, undaunted,
against the forceful wind.
Would you light the path for her so she can make her way
safely to the crossing point before she wearies?
Or would you rather dim yourself
so the mediocre don’t feel unsettled in the glare?”

- Torchbearer by Ms. Mayalakshmi Rao, 2012

It was a fun filled 4 day exhibit

Monday, August 20, 2012

Prism Shoes

1. Prism Shoes - These shoes have a lot of psychedelic art quality to them . The colours of light strike a unique balance with the black background of the shoes . 
2.The design is inspired largely from the pink floyd logo from the cover album Dark Side of the moon .
3.Subtle use of the rainbow has been used just so as to drop a hint of colour here and there

Sunday, July 29, 2012

The Eureka Moment!

You know life can be full of a lot of disappointing flashes,
And yet we need to get up,
Me thinks that my blog documents every time I get up.

Monday, July 23, 2012

I am the torch bearer

I am the torch bearer for the very journey that shall lead me to unison with the spirits, the fire and my beloved


Saturday, June 30, 2012

Britney Spears #2


Customized Shoe Art : Britney Spears #2 for Tejeshwar Sandhoo
If anyone wants to own a pair of custom designed canvas shoes like these they may contact me on leoartsk@gmail.com , message me on facebook or else call me
— with Britney Spears.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

All the carnivores together ;)


7.Untitled ( Carnivore 3 )

Mixed media on paper , 11'' x 15'' . Part of carnivore series 

6. Untitled ( Carnivore 1 )

Mixed media on water color paper , 9'' x 12''

5.Harp me lustless ( Carnivore 2)

Mixed media on water colour paper . 9'' x 12''


4. Give me gray ? No

Charcoal on tracing paper . 11'' x 16''

3. Attraversiamo ( Waunder 3 )

Mixed media on paper . 11'' x 16 '' inspiration "Safdarjung Tomb"

2.Blue Beacon ( Waunder 1 )


Mixed median on paper , size 11'' x 16'' .Called "Beacon Blue" part of the Waunder ( wonder + wander ) series

1. Irony ( Waunder 2 )

Mixed media on paper . This is an 11'' x 16'' painting titled Irony 

Collection at the exhibit :)

And now I shall upload the seven paintings that were on exhibit :) .
I hope I have built enough excitement for them :)

Che - Customized Shoe Art by Karan Leo Vohra

Art has no medium :) . Customized Shoe Art : Che
If anyone wants to own a pair of custom designed canvas shoes like these they may contact me on leoartsk@gmail.com or comment with details :)

Man in a robe

On a dark night as I heard "killing me softly with his song" by Roberta Flack this is what came out :)

Sinful Reminiscence

As I wrote in the post below, paintings made while the exhibit was on :)

Engulf me in darkness

My exhibition at Kuzart Lane was an enriching experience .Before I post the paintings that were on exhibit , I thought I'd show all ye blog readers what I have been upto all this while and so here are three paintings I made meanwhile my other work was on exhibit .

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Karan Vohra's Art Exhibition

Finally my art is being exhibited :D .
It feels great , the exhibition will be at  Kuzart Lane
Building Number 2, Hauz Khas Village, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, India 110016 ,  
from 10th June 2012 to 24th June 2012 :D


 A variety of my works are up for display and sale .
A couple of series,"Waunder" and "Carnivore" are on exhibit along with some independent works.
Sizes ranging from 9" x 12" to 16" x 11"
A variety of media have been used including acrylic , ink, charcoal and oil pastels .
For the line to the event -Karan Vohra's art exhibit 

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

NEW Series coming up - EXCITED!!

Hey there blog readers ,
I have some very exciting news to share , I am working on a series of paintings called Carnivores .
I shall reveal all of them together stay tuned .
I shall not tell you much about them and leave it to your imagination
Offcourse a little nudging or poking from your comments could get you a response ;)

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Document your mistakes, Set yourself free

Documenting your mistakes is probably more important than framing your achievments and hanging them on a wall . Our regrets and mistakes are embedded in our heart , and just as I have said it time and again , your experiences and the voice of your heart our the most accurate resources to become a better happier person .  Since regrets and mistakes are housed by our heart it is only right that we go back to them , not to feel pain , but to learn from them . One should not forget harsh / hard times - Let me rephrase . One should not forget the lessons learnt from hard times , remembering the pain is fool's choice .
I have been reading , analysing and noticing a patten in my actions . Even as the pattern is intact , it is collapsing , the vicious cycle of careless thoughtless mistakes is breaking . Four days of "nonsense" is replaced by three days of "silliness" , soon it will become four days of "Optimal Usage" .
And so I suggest to all , give up your egos , learn from your follies , become a better person .
Shine Shine
Come , let's talk to the divine
Let that sun shine ,
let the moon whisper into your ears catch you unawares
Bask in the warmth ,
Bask in their mystery ,
Willful endeavors aren't easy to take on
but that's the fun of it you horny little fellow ;)

Depth First Search ;)


To be confused isn't a bad thing to be. When your confusion makes you inquisitive, you question the norms, and in questioning them you not only find answers but also discover other possibilities. Discovery, re-discovery, and invention together make you a better person. Hence, you mold yourself rather than being manipulated by social constructs and societal norms. I am thinking about existence, love, God and the composite of myriad other energies; I find clarity in the fact that I ain't rigid, I am questioning, and questioning is a good thing :)

Sneaking "into" those windows

Even as you face your past ,
As windows bring back to you familiar light , familiar darkness
As desires then unfulfilled are no longer so
And promises to oneself seem a mix of show
the glamour of innocence that lead to those promises
insecurities that led to lieing in the mirror
I look up , proud as I fly , I break those walls of false shine
the glass shards fall , and as they disappear
the sun shines on them , reminds me of the challenges to face
those dreams seem to be realised now
those insecurities lessened
Honesty forever is a turn on

Friday, March 23, 2012

Face Painting - Devil

Hey readers , I also took part and came FIRST  in a face painting competition . The theme being Devil . This is how I justify or simply feel about what I painted . I feel that when there is a lot of anger , it leads to fire . The fire ,even as it is a combination of hues of yellow and red , is dominated by the blackness of negativity , anger , frustration , hate .
Hate as they say is love gone wrong , and so this man is an asura , given powers by the mahadev after years of tapasya , and despite years of meditation the "krodh" , the anger hasn't come down . The colours I have used on the face are for the most part ink , this is because ink leaves a dull impession when painted on the skin , and such negativity should only rightly be dull . The pure symbols of Swastika , Aum and Trishul are however white since even in such darkness such purity will forever shine . The entire face wasn't painted because even as one becomes a devil , some human spirit survives.

Shades and Shadows - Earth in balance

Hey readers , I recently won a competition at Enva , an environment fest organised by the environment society of my college .The topic was "Earth in balance " . Looking forward for some comments and reviews :) . The sketch was completed in 30 minutes and was made on blank side of a one side used paper . I will soon get a better picture of scan but for now have a look .

Saturday, February 25, 2012

My desires sexual or otherwise  seem to lie in a muse I have yet to find . Most people have so far disappointed me perhaps I look for God in my love , someone who can destroy me and let me be created from the very seed that led to the destruction . Irrespective , my muse evades me ,it lurks in some dark corner or dances on  some glorified stage .. My own sentiments astound me .

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

CHAKRA !

chakratirtha travels-karan leo vohra copyright !