Francis Lalramdinngheta
I usually paint every piece with the end result visualising in my head or sketching it out, but with this piece, I had the concept but not a clear picture of how the final piece would look. The concept focuses on highlighting the significance and symbolism of a traditional Mizo cultural headpiece, aiming to educate and shed light on the meaning behind every detail. It was for an exhibition and I only had five days to paint, so l rushed it a bit and underestimated it.
The size was larger than what I usually paint, and I wanted to explore a different technique in this style. After days of constant erasing, fixing, and painting over layers upon layers without proper sleep and rest, every layer gave me hope, but I ended up hating it. It felt like I was just wasting paint, my time, energy, and passion, so I finally gave up. I think this is the only piece l have given up on. I hated it, but somehow I love that I actually hate it, because this piece humbled me and reminded me of my workflow, thinking through before creating a piece. And yeah, mad respect to artists who paint spontaneously.
And in the spirit of the poem from 10 Things I Hate About You, I have my own list of hates and loves about this painting. I hate the colour harmony. I hate the texture built up by the messed-up paint layers. I hate painting over, hoping it will get better, but never. I hate how each layer makes me feel like a failure. I hate every paint I squeeze, feels like a waste. I hate the feeling of the canvas itself being a waste. I hate loving how it reminds me of failure. I hate loving how it humbles me. I hate loving how it gives me new perspective. I hate loving how it reminds me of imperfection. I love that I hate it.
Francis, based in Aizawl, is a multidisciplinary artist skilled in painting, sculpture, and fashion design. His work blends traditional and modern techniques, reviving near-forgotten stories from his Mizo heritage to spark appreciation for these fading traditions. Whether working in oil, acrylic, watercolor, ink, or digital mediums, his art serves as a bridge between the past and the present.
Ptenopus 