Atul Dodiya, the veteran artist, is a graduate from Sir J.J. School of Art, Mumbai and has also received his academic training at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. He began exhibiting his work since the 1980s, right after his graduation. Here, he offers MW a look at the equipment he uses to create his work.
Brushes
I mostly stick to local, unbranded brushes. For oil paintings, I prefer rugged brushes, so I use hog hair brushes more often. For water colours, I opt for sable haired brushes. I generally pick round brushes for smaller areas and smooth surfaces, and flat, broad brushes for bigger areas or rough surfaces. I don’t throw away my old brushes. They still have a certain quality and I end up needing them.
Fevicol
I use it a lot in text-based work. For instance, I have used charcoal mixed with water and added a little Fevicol to the mix, so that the charcoal sticks to the surface.
Canvas
I generally opt for linen canvases by the Italian brand Pintura. I like heavy-duty frames, even though they are expensive, so that the stretcher won’t warp easily in our dry summers and humid monsoons. Locally, Camel makes a decent canvas too.
Palette Knife
Lots of people use it to create texture, but that’s not my style. I use the palette knife just to mix paint and move it aside if I’ve squeezed out too much.
Marble Dust
I buy it from building material suppliers and use it for texturing sometimes. It can be applied using a thin coat of Fevicol.
Spray Paints
I’ve done a few pieces on laminate, using enamel work. For those, I need permanent and strong sprays. Although I don’t use them often, I rely on the brand Bosny.
Paints
In my early days as an artist, imported paints weren’t easily available. Then when there was an open market to import these things, I started working with Winsor & Newton — an almost-200-year-old English company. I use their oil paints, but for water colours, I rely on Camel. I’ve tried lots of international brands, including the Germany company Lukas, but somehow my palette is limited to 5-7 main water colours, and I’m used to the tonalities offered by Camel. An American company called Golden makes good acrylic colours, which I sometimes use as the base of my paintings. They have fantastic luminosity. The French brand Pebeo is also quite good, as is Norma.
