Meet Sujata Tibrewala | Economist artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sujata Tibrewala and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sujata, have you ever found yourself in a spot where you had to decide whether to give up or keep going? How did you make the choice?
People often ask me how long have you been painting and I say I never stopped . Because art is how I survive my daily life , the pressures of a corporate job , ups and downs of being a wife, mother and daughter and life in general. Did I ever think I would be an exhibiting artist , no . I just painted because it made the world melt away and pulled me into the world I was creating in my paintings . It was as if time would stop as I got lost in my creations . And this is what kept me going and keeps me going

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am not a trained artist . I went to school for engineering. So when I set out to show my work , I didn’t know where to start . I just started going to different galleries and talking to people there to find out how to start ? I bought a digital camera , took pictures of my art work and started sending my website link to galleries . After many rejections one gallery that accepted emerging artists accepted my work and that became the turning point in my career . This was in Bangalore India . Then I moved to us and had to start all over again . Went to museums galleries , observed what other artists were doing to figure out what I should be doing . I have had three solo shows this year and run a non profit to support other Indian American artists called Indian American Artists Association, and I keep learning

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I love living in the Bay Area , Drive one hour drive and you are in SFO , another hour in Monterey, half moon bay or Santa Cruz . A few more hours and you are in Yosemite and Tahoe . I would make a week long itinerary to explore all these locations and also some excellent South Bay trails like Mission Peak and Ed Levin County park . Milpitas and San Jose are right now Bay Area’s food capital with so many different cuisines, Indian , veitnamese, Burmese , Mexican , Mediterranean so on and so forth . I would just pick a different cuisine for every meal and just go

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There was a time when I was just painting but wasn’t able to dig deep and really express my emotions. This is when another artist Vasudevan in Bangalore asked me to paint as if this was my last painting. This is my mantra now . Each one of my painting now goes through a lease of is that me ? Does that reflect who I am , fully ? What if it were my last painting ? And slowly but surely I understand what he actually meant

Website: https://www.sujatapratibimba.com/

Instagram: https://Sujata.tibre

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sujata-tibrewala?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app

Facebook: Sujata.tibrewala

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@sujatatibre?si=mgyVA6j9aQNW0QyB

Image Credits
Simmi Sood