Spenta Chothia 

My goal is to make work from my energy and express my everyday feelings. When I create, I use the subject as a starting point. I don’t want to replicate; I want to extract the beauty and sentiment I get from that subject. Painting helps me release my emotions and connect myself to the subject. Throughout the last four years, I practised this self-expression and examined the feelings I have towards the subjects I paint. 

Weeds in My Backyard was made for pure enjoyment. I created this painting to help me vent my emotions and to depict something not normally considered pretty. I felt the weeds were calling me and I needed to express that. I had no goals aside from painting without caring about how it would look and trusting my feelings. I applied oil paint and alkyd medium to the canvas with a pallet knife, brushes, and splattering which led me to create Weeds in my Backyard in about three to four weeks. While painting this piece I felt happy as I was reminded of my childhood freedoms. 

Flowers My Brother Brought Home was inspired by a bouquet my brother acquired around mid-October or November. I began with a grey mid-tone, then layered paint onto the work using multiple techniques and mediums: spray paint, a palette knife, and oil paints. This work was different from Weeds in My Backyard as I’d expected it to look a certain way, however, it was ultimately more complex. My goal with this piece was to better my skills with realism, extract the flowers’ energy, and release my emotions.

My handmade ceramic pottery is my way of sharing things. I love working with clay and making objects people can use. The way I make them is similar to my paintings, where I let my energy guide me. The mugs have hearts carved on them and are often made as gifts; this is my way of sharing love and appreciating the beauty of an object made for pure enjoyment. These works give me the opportunity to spend time with loved ones while I create them, which is the greatest gift of all for me. 

Spenta Chothia is a Canadian Artist living in King City, Ontario. Spenta has always had a huge interest in drawing, painting and sculpture ever since she can remember. She is an Art and Art History Student at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Sheridan College.