Ramayana

The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. Perhaps it is the world's oldest piece of literature. Cherished throughout India and Asia for millenia, it has been faithfully preserved and passed on in varied forms of popular expression - epic poems, folk tales, music, dance, drama, puppet shows, sculpture, paintings, even films and comic books. The stories and personalities associated with this epic tale have captured the hearts and minds of countless generations.

The Ramayana is revered throughout the ages for its moral and spiritual wisdom. It is a beautiful and uplifting tale of romance and high adventure, recounting the odyssey of Rama, a great king of ancient India. Rama, along with his beautiful wife Sita and faithful brother Lakshmana, is exiled to the forest for fourteen years, where Sita is abducted by the powerful demon Ravana, king of the city of gold. Ram, accompanied by his brother and a fantastic army of supernatural creatures, embarks on a perilous quest to find his beloved Sita.

The Ramayana has a vast audience all over the world. It is called the Ramakien in Thailand, the Serat Rama in Indonesia, the Yama Pwe in Burma, and the Maharadia Lawana in the Philippines.

Despite its huge popularity in Eastern cultures, and even though it is recognized by many western scholars as a literary masterpiece, most people in the west have never heard of the Ramayana

Prince Rama

Sita -Rama. Watercolor and ink on paper. 20 x 30 in.

I have completed a series of illustrations for the Ramayana. They will be published in a book my daughter and I are collaborating on : A Prince in Exile. It will be the first in a series of three books. The painting to the left depicts one of Rama's and Sita's first privat meetings.

Ravana- King of the Golden city of Lanka.

All classical stories have bad and evil characters in them. In Ramayana, the main evil charater is Ravana. The darkness of his personality is hard to describe in words what to speak of in an illustration. I did not entirely want to depict him as a monster. My understanding is that he, although crooked, was rather handsome and the women of his palace did have an attraction to him.

Watercolor Paintings

Another of my projects is to paint large watercolor paintings. The last large painting I completed is called Darsan. Darsan means to view or the have the audience. It depicts the gopis of Vraja meeting on the riverbank of the sacred river Yamuna.

Doll face designs

A few years ago a friend of mine asked me to make face designs for her hand crafted lovely dolls. Altogether I did about 10 - 15 designs. Below are some of the face designs and also a photo of two of her dolls.

House Portraits

I have made a few house portraits. The house portrait I like most is Haglunda, the watercolor painting to the right. Haglunda, our family house in Sweden, was ours for several generations. Unfortunately we had to give up this house when my dad passed away a few years ago.

Sometime ago I was asked if I could do a couple of more architectural drawings. This kind of artwork is not my favorite but I did enjoy doing them. In a sense I found it easier that to make a fantasy composition in my mind. It is mostly about perspective and straight lines.

I did use my imagination, specially for the airial watercolor to the left. I did not have enough information to make a more accurate drawing. The main purpose was to show the different house complexes in relationship to eachother.