Artist Shivangini Rana has expressed the many dimensions of life, struggle, emotion, hope, and identity in abstract painting through her solo art exhibition ‘Roots and Blooms’.

At ‘The Art Salon’ on the fifth floor of Chhaya Center in Thamel, Kathmandu, a few people were observing the paintings displayed on the walls. Some were praising the artworks. Others were engaging in lively discussions with each other about the emotions they perceived in the paintings. Shivangini was introducing her paintings to the viewers who were examining her works.

Shivangini feels that people only see the flowers, but never the roots. They do not understand the struggle and hard work within. It is with this idea that she is conveying a message through the ‘Roots and Blooms’ exhibition.

“Life is like that too. Everyone sees the shine of success, but no one except oneself sees the struggle, pain, failure, and continuous effort hidden behind it,” she said. “Where we came from, how much we struggled to get here, that is not visible from the outside. If the flower is our achievement, the root is our struggle.”

The fine lines visible in her paintings are also connected to this philosophy. She calls those vein-like lines ‘roots’. This very style has now become her own artistic identity.

“Every artist has their own language. My language is these lines. This is my identity,” she said.

“There is no right or wrong in abstract art. Each person truly sees in the painting what comes from their own heart,” she said. “In a single painting, people see different interpretations.” Rana says that the best thing about abstract art is that everyone can delve deeply into the painting and understand it in their own way.

For the exhibition, 76 of Shivangini’s paintings have been displayed. On the first floor are her works from 2018 onwards, while on another floor, new creations are showcased. The colorful flowers and hues in the paintings seem to inspire positive thinking and hope.

None of her paintings are sad. Most of her works are filled with bright colors, flowers, and symbols of nature. She prefers to present hope over sorrow, possibility over despair, and the success that comes after struggle through her paintings. This positive energy is the hallmark of her works. She says that many people have liked her paintings, which are filled with energy and positive messages.

In one painting hanging on the gallery wall, “White Dandelions” are flying toward the sky. At first glance, many might see it as just a beautiful natural scene. But for artist Shivangini Rana, it is not just a flower, but a symbol of hope that heals nature. During the COVID-19 lockdown, people around the world were confined to their homes. Places that were usually crowded were empty. But at that time, she felt that nature had found new life. “Pollution decreased, the sky became clear, even rivers and seas got some relief. I expressed that feeling by creating dandelions in my painting,” she said. “We were all inside our homes, but nature was alive. That painting is a story of hope and rebirth for the environment.”

She says she creates her paintings not by planning or guessing in advance, but spontaneously. “I don’t create paintings by pre-planning or by looking at something, but based on emotions,” she said. Just as people are admiring her through her paintings, she is also making pashmina shawls inspired by those same artworks. “I didn’t want my art to be limited only to the gallery walls. I wanted art lovers to experience it in their daily lives, so I transferred the paintings onto shawls,” she said. She initially made shawls just to gain experience, but as they became popular both in Nepal and abroad, she decided to continue making them.