Experiences, whether pleasurable or distressing, eventually fade away with time and quietly slip into the unconscious where they reside indefinitely. The only portal that reincarnates this elapsed information is a dream that indiscriminately reveals trivial occurrences or bizarre events from the past. However, lucid dreaming is an exception, where the dreamer can consciously trigger inspiration and induce creative thinking.

One such dreamer is Tabinda Chinoy; a believer in aesthetics of nature who strives to portray thriving images that are close to life. Her bold, vibrant and ingenious canvases and sculptures confer visual gratification and amorously shepherd the viewers to tranquil sanctuaries.

Your work is reminiscent of the primitive painters such as Henri Rousseau and Paul Gauguin while Ali Imam once hinted at the Chagall-like freedom with which you handle the subjects. Would you like to comment on your style and its development through the years?

I consider myself fortunate to have had art training from Ali Imam, my sole mentor. He was the one who identified the Chagall-like freedom in my work and encouraged me to nurture it without inhibition or apprehension. Consequently, over the years, I struggled through a series of transitions, which helped me arrive at a juncture where, I reckon, my work drew attention.

The purity of expression as a consequence of conscious surreal vision backed with a creative resolve is obvious from the concepts portrayed in your paintings. How do you trigger the thinking process to conjure a specific idea brimming with empathy? Do you actually perceive the idea beforehand or would it rather develop itself through the execution process?

Being a dreamer, I find it adventurous to conduct random exploration in the surreal world of heightened fantasy but with reference to the real world. Sifting through a range of concepts, I certainly perceive an idea beforehand, and it does take its own course as I paint. The execution process is intuitive, and it is almost as if I am in a dream when I am at work.

Purely from the spiritual perspective — what is your personal objective and purpose behind the themes that you paint i.e. portraits, cityscapes and figures? What is it that you want to convey to the viewers?

My lifelong penchant for upbeat and positive moments almost borders on dreaming, nevertheless, they are not improbable or outworldly; they are grounded in solid will and can be drawn into reality as the human mind is capable of far more. A book based on my paintings, Between dreams and reality, truly expresses in detail the backdrop to the themes that I choose.

Where do you hold your ambitions in the field of painting?

I paint for the love of painting and would like to be remembered as an artist who could see the sunshine, moonlight and a lot of beauty despite the persistent environment of precariousness and insecurity.

In the perspective of your studies abroad and international acclaim, what are your views about the current state of art in the country?

The response that our national art is receiving has never been better. The proliferation of art galleries across the country and their regular activities stand testament to this development. In the international art scene, names like Shazia Sikander, Bashir Mirza, Jamil Naqsh and many more are making waves at Sotheby's, Bonhams, Christies, etc,. They are sought by art collectors far and wide. Upcoming artists are catching up swiftly, and I am sure that each year two to three new names will enter the international markets and steal the show.

Amidst the current psychosocial enigma, what do you think the artists can do or should do to develop a positive outlook? What would you advise the budding artists?

We all know that these are trying times, and our younger artists are overwhelmed by what they observe and sense in the prevailing environment. Consequently, all this tends to appear in their portrayal in the form of dark and depressive imagery of violence. However, it is important for our budding artists to see a lighter, positive and the sunnier side of their beautiful young lives, and express it in the same spirit!