Interview with: Adarsha Ajay

August 2025

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Adarsha Ajay is a UK-based contemporary artist originally from Kerala, India, who is re-emerging into the art world with powerful clarity and renewed purpose after life’s hardships. Her transformative journey began with the conscious decision to pursue a Master’s in Painting, marking the start of reclaiming her artistic voice. Rising from a period of silence and struggle, she weaves together the sacred and the personal, blending traditional Indian aesthetics with Western conceptual approaches, enriched by spiritual symbolism from both Hinduism and Christianity. Through intricate patterns, evocative storytelling, and deeply charged imagery, Adarsha explores profound themes of identity, womanhood, and inner rebirth. Her work transcends personal healing to create universal connections, building bridges across cultures, faiths, and emotional landscapes. This re-emergence is not just a return but a bold, heartfelt commitment to art as a vessel for empowerment, connection, and transformation.

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Welcome, Adarsha, first tell us about your background and why you chose to pursue this career.
Do you remember the first artwork that stirred something inside you?

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Thank you for this opportunity, it’s a joy to be here. I was born in Kerala, India, and my relationship with art began as a quiet, inner dialogue. Over the years, it became a deeply transformative journey that helped me reconnect with myself and the world around me. Art wasn’t something I simply chose; it called me back to life when I needed it most. What began as a personal practice evolved
into a way of thinking, healing, and ultimately sharing.
I still remember the first artwork that truly moved me; it was a small mural of a goddess I saw in a temple during childhood. It was simple, yet something in her eyes felt alive and silent, like she understood suffering. That image stayed with me for years. Now I realise it planted the seed for the feminine divinity that recurs in my own work.

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How would you describe your artistic practice? What are the recurring elements, themes, and concepts you refer to?

 

My practice is deeply meditative and symbolic. I explore themes like transformation, inner strength, spiritual awakening, and the feminine divine. Recurring elements include sacred symbols, storytelling motifs, and intricate patterns that speak to continuity and connection. At its core, my work aims to be both personal and collective, to offer a space where the viewer can pause, reflect, and reconnect with their own sense of wholeness.

 

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Is there a particular reason why you decided to use painting as a medium of expression?

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Absolutely. Painting offers a spiritual and emotional depth that speaks to me beyond words, painting gave me what words couldn’t. When I was going through depression and emotional abuse, verbal language failed me. Painting became my silence, my scream, my prayer. The tactile, meditative act of layering paint allowed me to process pain in ways I didn’t fully understand at the time. Over time, it evolved into a ritual, a healing space. I still find that painting allows me to communicate from the deepest parts of myself without needing to explain.

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What inspires you? Where do the ideas come from? How do you develop your projects?

 

Inspiration comes from many sources, spiritual texts, temple murals, dreams, and moments of quiet introspection. I’m also deeply inspired by the strength and grace I see in everyday women, especially those who continue to rise and create in the face of adversity. My projects often begin with a thought, a question, or a symbol. From there, I sketch, research, and reflect until the image reveals
itself. It's less about control and more about allowing something meaningful to emerge and take form.

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What do you want your art to convey to the people who see it?

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I want my art to offer a sense of possibility, to remind people of their own capacity to grow, to heal, and to rise. I’m especially passionate about connecting with women who may have felt unseen or unheard. I hope that through my work, people feel held, reflected, and inspired. More than anything, I want to give something back: a moment of stillness, a spark of strength, a visual reminder that transformation is possible. My work is not polished perfection; it’s raw, layered, and often emotional. I want it to hold space for pain, silence, spiritual yearning, and strength. My hope is that someone looking at my work feels a quiet recognition, a reminder that transformation is possible, and that healing, though not always beautiful, is sacred.

 

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Clearly, you have a distinct and identifiable personal style; how did you develop it?
Was there a specific person or movement that inspired you?

 

My style evolved through personal necessity. I wasn’t trying to fit into any movement, I was trying to survive. It developed organically through experience and spiritual inquiry. I’ve been influenced by Indian mural traditions and devotional art, but also by the conceptual openness of Western artists. I admire the work of Frida Kahlo for her symbolic storytelling and Hilma af Klint for her spiritual abstraction. That said, my visual language is deeply personal, built from years of quiet practice, reflection, and a desire to build bridges between inner experience and outer expression.

 

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What projects will you be developing during this year? What about the next one?

 

This year, I’m focusing on a new body of work that explores the theme of sacred silence, a visual meditation on the spaces where healing begins. These works will weave together feminine symbolism, sacred geometry, and layered storytelling inspired by both Indian and western spiritual traditions. I’m also planning to collaborate with a few community-led art spaces in the UK to explore art as a tool for emotional well-being and collective healing.

Next year, I aim to develop a more immersive project, possibly an installation or series of large-scale works, that invites viewers into a contemplative environment. I'm also in the early stages of planning a series of workshops for women and young creatives from underrepresented backgrounds, using visual storytelling as a means of empowerment and self-reclamation. I hope that these projects not only expand my artistic language but also offer something of value back to the wider community.

 

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Who are your favourite artists, and who are the ones that built your creative imaginary?

 

One of the artists who has had a profound impact on me is Frida Kahlo. Her ability to turn personal suffering into a universal visual language deeply resonates with my own journey. Like her, I use art as a tool for inner transformation—a space where pain can be reimagined as strength, and where identity becomes a sacred narrative. Her unapologetic honesty, her fusion of the personal with the political, and her use of indigenous and religious iconography have all influenced the way I approach my work. But while Frida gave me the courage to embrace vulnerability, my visual language is rooted in my cultural heritage.

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We are at the end of this short interview, would you like to add something about your artistic research? How did you find the collaboration with our gallery?

 

​I see my artistic research as an ongoing offering an exploration of how visual language can hold space for reflection, healing, and connection across cultures. Currently, I’m delving deeper into themes of spiritual silence and the feminine as a vessel of transformation.
The collaboration with your gallery has been incredibly meaningful. It’s refreshing to engage with a platform that values authenticity and artistic depth. I’m grateful to be part of this dialogue, and I look forward to continuing to create work that speaks not just from me, but to a wider community.

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