Browse through Green Park-resident Rupa Samaria’s Instagram feed (@rupasamaria), and you will find a diverse range of avian paintings. “The striking plumage and colours are what captured my interest in painting birds,” shares the artist who has showcased her works at various exhibitions. Samaria recalls a visit to Dehradun as a young girl—it is here that she started enjoying painting bird species. “I came across a Baya weaver bird building a nest in our garden. It was delightful,” she adds.
Artist Rubina Rajan (@artmacaque), a program officer, Sacred Earth Trust—a non-profit organisation working to protect key species and natural habitats—shares a story similar to Samaria. “It was during my master’s that I started creating works that combine my interest in wildlife and painting,” shares Rajan, who has a master’s degree in Wildlife Sciences. Now a commissioned artist, Rajan makes wildlife pieces—using gouache, water colours, etc.,—and often showcases at various pop-up shows.
Apart from being nature enthusiasts, what is common between Samaria and Rajan is that they have translated their fascination with the wild into art. But that’s not all. Another similarity is that both these artists aim to use their creative skills to raise awareness about wildlife conservation.
Adding creativity to a cause
Through paintings, sculptures and other visual art forms, wildlife artists generate awareness of endangered creatures as well as man-made issues that impact the environment. “Art is a great medium to draw people’s attention and then give them a message. It is a great tool to create awareness. This realisation has really changed how I look at nature and art,” adds Rajan who is of the opinion that artists help simplify the process of wildlife conservation as well. “Often, when we talk about conservation, we talk in numbers or jargons. For a person who is not from the background, would find it difficult to understand the reasons behind wildlife preservation—this is where art helps.”
Taking the message forward
Both the artists we spoke for this story shared how social media, especially Instagram, is a great tool to spread the message of wildlife conservation and awareness. “Social media is a space wherein if a certain picture or post attracts someone, they want to know more about it—that way it is very helpful,” comments Samaria who also conducts workshops with children on painting birds and, in the process, sensitises them to themes of animal welfare.
Over the past decade, several researchers have pointed out how, owing to rapid urbanisation, there have been dwindling sightings of the house sparrow, a domestic bird. In an attempt to point out the same, Samaria held an exhibition titled ‘A Bird Calls’ at India Habitat Centre early this year. “We hardly get to see sparrows in our neighbourhoods now. There used to be a time when their call would fill the air,” she says, adding how she strives to share the message about this endangered species through her works. The exhibition also featured a series of works focused on owls. “During Diwali, owls are massacred and hunted for various reasons. I got to know about this and it really distubed me, which is why I worked on a series around this,” adds Samaria, who speaks to birders for her research.
While Samaria is now working on creating awareness about birds of the Aravallis, Rajan is taking orders for T-shirts that sport a digital illustration of the Olive Ridley Turtle—which is included as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.