At Artist Project in Toronto this year, I was reminded how it feels to stand with my work (for four full days in a row) and watch people meet it in real time.
I spend months alone in the studio, building my paintings mark by mark, thought by thought, but the moment someone pauses in front of it, the work changes. It begins a conversation that I simply cannot have by myself.
I spoke with people who saw stories and emotions in the paintings that I hadn’t named — and the honesty was moving. I don’t paint to explain, but I do want the work to evoke genuine reflection. And four days at the fair confirmed that my latest Inner Poetry series does indeed that.
Some of my encounters at the fair led to sales and commissions, but the real gift for me was connection — seeing how art matters to people.
It reminded me that art lives fully only when it’s seen and felt. See this collection here.
~ Aadila
