A hobby with Origins, Srihan Adabala, 6th Grade, NY
My name is Srihan Adabala. I attend Hauppauge Middle School, and I love art. I started taking drawing seriously at the age of 6 or 7, and now I am 13. I still continue to draw with passion. I am here sharing my 7-year journey with you. When I draw my subconscious mind attracts me toward drawing traditional Indian art. I believe this happens because of multiple reasons. The biggest one being I am actually from there.
Even though I didn’t take drawing seriously until the age of six, I used to make my dad draw the Indian god of hurdles(Lord Ganesha). Then I would color these drawings and ask him to draw it all over again. This was when I was still in India and was only 4 or 5. When we got to America, North Carolina. I got an Ipad and that's when it all began. I had a simple app that showed me how to draw things step by step. I would also trace things and color things. I just started banging out drawings one after another. But to be honest they were horrible. I used to also experiment with watercolors and paints. Once I saw a new technique, I wanted to try it. When I was 8, I started to use drawings online for inspiration instead of step by step instructions. Then I finally settled on using oil pastels and paint, this brought a style to my art.
The next phase was when I came to New York. I also started shading then. This made my drawings neater compared to oil pastels. My parents also joined me in art class for a few months. The teacher there also gave me shading pencils. But now I teach myself how to draw and use color pencils instead of oil pastels for color because they are better for blending and give a neater look to my art. I started drawing realistic things like human faces and animals during this phase. My art is now at another level. My parents also started to frame my art now I knew I achieved something. I would jump at any chance I got. In 5th grade, I won 100 dollars for an earth day poster contest and also won the agenda book cover contest in my school.
Even though my life took me all over the place my art helps me remember my origins and express myself. My art to me is more than a hobby it is a world where I enjoy myself and forget everything. For everybody reading this I hope you find your world too. Whatever you do, enjoy doing it and don’t let anyone judge you.