‘Art is itself a language. I want to eventually combine the neuroscience and art into art therapy.’

Jericho

“I grew up in India and I had a knack for biological sciences, I completed my master’s in Zoology, and I was ready to venture ahead. My dream was to come to America and do research work and pursue a PhD. I came here all by myself and studied neuroscience at Louisiana State University. But since childhood I loved drawing, sketching and painting.

“I met and married my husband, finished my PhD, and started my post doctorate fellowship at Mount Sinai. I was working there when I had my baby. I struggled between being a mom and being a scientist. I realized I’m not happy, I can’t give enough time to my kid nor to my research. In neuroscience I learned that the first few years in a child’s life is very important, so I had to step back and focus on him and get him on the proper footing.

“Being with my son full-time at home, I started drawing and painting again. It grew more and I learned more techniques that I saw online, and more avenues opened up. India is my foundation; my parents are still there, and I visit India but America helped me blossom. Now I do different types of painting, airbrush, marble painting, fluid art painting and more.

I don’t even speak the language, but I felt this art gives me a lot of self-esteem, a lot of confidence and at the same time it’s very therapeutic, your brain is always thinking of something.

“I found that I can do some optical illusions in sketching. I was interested because I studied in neuroscience how our eyes get adjusted to optical illusions. I was editorial coordinator of my child’s school magazine, “Pen and Ink,” and now I’m involved in Maharashtra Mandal, New York, people from India joining together. They use my paintings on their magazine cover page. I don’t even speak the language, but I felt this art gives me a lot of self-esteem, a lot of confidence and at the same time it’s very therapeutic, your brain is always thinking of something.

“Art is itself a language. I want to eventually combine the neuroscience and art into art therapy. Art can make me very happy. I think about how to bring people together and create things with them, especially with kids with ADHD and adults who are depressed, how this art can help improve their brain activity, their calmness.”