For as long as she can remember, Sujata Tibrewala has always been an artist.
As a child, she poured countless hours into drawing and painting whenever she got the chance. Her family would scold her often for devoting so much time to her art.
“They would ask me why I wasn’t in the kitchen, helping my mom with chores,” said Tibrewala.
While she put a lot of energy into her painting, she was also an incredibly bright student. As she was growing up in Jaipur, India, Tibrewala’s teachers would always tell her, “You’re very good at your studies. You have to be either a doctor or an engineer.”
The experience of dissecting a frog in tenth grade made Tibrewala’s stomach turn, so she decided to go into engineering. Although art was in her heart, she knew it wasn’t a feasible career option. People would always tell her that being an artist meant she wouldn’t make any money.
“It was a do or die situation,” said Tibrewala. “I wanted to become a professional and to be independent. I didn’t want to be like my mom and be in the kitchen all day. For me, I felt this was my passport to life. So I moved away from art at that time.”
Tibrewala went on to study engineering at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, then attended grad school at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. Years passed without her creating art of any kind.
But then things changed…
After graduating college, she got married and had a child. When her daughter was around 4 years old, she would spend hours drawing and painting. And she breezed quickly through the creation of each new piece.
Tibrewala told her, “If you spend more time on each painting, each one will be really good.”
But her daughter wouldn’t listen.
So Tibrewala bought her own materials and started painting again. She wanted to teach her daughter that by taking one’s time with each work of art, one could create something truly spectacular. Tibrewala started focusing on creating a single painting. And since she was also working full-time and taking care of a small child, it took her a year to complete it.
“Once [my daughter] saw me do that, she started spending more time on her own painting,” Tibrewala smiled.
As of that turning point, Tibrewala slowly started to create more art again. Then in 2008, when she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, Tibrewala’s art went to the next level.
“I got depressed after the fibromyalgia. There was a lot happening in my life, being a mother and trying to balance everything with work,” said Tibrewala. “I was keeping everything inside. So that really got me started in really painting to express myself.”
Her art took on deeper meaning and resonance.
With a focus on eco-feminist and symbolic art, Tibrewala’s process is all about slowing down and observing. Her art carries a tangible vibrancy, with bold colors and symbols spread out across the canvas.
By now, her art has been featured in six solo shows, as well as a series of group shows across India and the U.S. Tibrewala’s work has also been featured at a show in London. To date, she has sold multiple paintings to buyers all over the world.
Tibrewala has been a resident of Milpitas since 2016 and continues to work as an engineer. Currently, at the Milpitas Library, her paintings are on display on both the first and second floors, in a series called “Curvy Yoga.” She also has work on display at the Phantom Gallery at the Milpitas Community Center, in a series called “Feminism Reinvented.” Her art will be exhibited at both Milpitas locations till May 22, and the public is welcome to go and see it.
Learn more about Sujata Tibrewala on her website.
