Twenty-one-year-old Yurisha Ramdayal, who created her first art piece in high school, is an inspiration to budding artists and says that expressing herself through art gave her the peace and courage to be comfortable in her own skin.
Ramdayal feels that most of her earlier pieces reflected her struggles with mental health. “I would say that my first few paintings were very ‘emo’ themed. I focused a lot on expressing the state of my mental health. Through my art, I was able to portray what I was feeling when I could not necessarily find the words to articulate,” she said.
Her more recent pieces focus on Hindu culture and the articulation of the gods and goddesses. “I began painting and creating cultural pieces because my parents wanted something beautiful to display on the wall, something not emo. One of my more recent pieces is the Ganesha that I created using charcoal on canson paper. There is so much beauty in the Hindu deities and I was able to create a lot of detail in this particular piece.”
Ramdayal has gifted some of her artwork to family members, the most recent being to her eldest brother who recently got married.
“When we attended the wedding, I was inundated with requests from family members for unique pieces for their homes,” she said.
Not only is Ramdayal a talented artist but she is also a third-year law student with hopes of branching off into criminal psychology.
“Although I am currently studying, I would love to one day have many of my pieces on display in a gallery.” She would also like to attempt to paint or sketch the landmarks of the world and with skills like hers, we can definitely look forward to her future pieces.
