"Chef’s timeout" Painting

Sriram, born in India in 1976 and now residing in Norway, is a self-taught artist who began painting in his late 30s. Primarily working with watercolors, his favorite subjects are people in everyday life—from the young to the elderly, whether they’re reading, walking pets, chatting, or simply going about their routines. He also enjoys capturing street scenes.

Initially experimenting with acrylics, Sriram ultimately gravitated towards watercolors, drawn to the medium's fluidity, which allowed him to explore light, shadow, and the absence of light. His work often highlights the subtle dynamics between water and pigment, reflecting the way people can become so absorbed in their own world that they lose awareness of the life unfolding around them. People are central to his paintings, not for their anatomy, but through the lines, shapes, and contrasts of light and shadow that convey their emotions and moods.

In addition to watercolors, Sriram enjoys working with oils, creating smaller, affordable pieces that focus on plein air landscapes, still life, and figurative subjects from his home studio.

Although he holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce and works full-time in IT, Sriram’s passion for drawing and painting means each piece is a continual learning process. He draws inspiration from contemporary artists like Alvaro Castagnet, Eudes Corriea, Joseph Zbukvic, Graham Berry, Rajkumar Stabathy, Dan Garzino, Craig Stephen, and Ramesh Jhawar.