THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 15, 1995 TAG: 9510130179
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Frank Roberts
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
Shikha Sartar describes her paintings as nature-based.
Her abstract interpretations may not be exactly what Mother Nature had in mind, but they challenge the mind while pleasing the eye.
``Art is largely a self-unconscious process - the overflow of one's inner spirit,'' said Sartar, a resident artist of d'ART Center in downtown Norfolk. ``We all have our personal museums filled with our experiences, childhood images, memories of classical art, formulas shared by our teachers, the books we've loved, the conversations we've treasured and the great beauty of God's world.''
She and her husband, Dr. Dilip Sartar, who works at Maryview Hospital and Portsmouth General, live on Windy Point Drive in Suffolk with their son and daughter, Shaoli and Shayan, Norfolk Academy students.
Their large home is beautiful and neat, save for one unruly room reserved for the tools of the artist's trade.
Sartar resumed painting, something she had enjoyed when younger, four years ago with courses at Norfolk State University and Old Dominion University, where, in September, she received her master's degree in visual arts.
That was followed by a successful show and sale in the Portsmouth Gallery.
``I'm looking forward to more exhibits. I want to involve myself, totally, in art work,'' Sartar said, adding emphatically, ``family is my first priority.''
She enjoys cooking for them.
``My specialty is spicy Indian foods,'' Sartar said, ``but I like fast-food places.''
What brought you here? My husband got a job in Portsmouth, so we moved from Phoenix.
Birthdate/Hometown? Nov. 21, some year this century. Jalpaiguri, India.
Fondest childhood memory? Family reunion with my father at his tea estate, where he used to work.
Marital status/Children? Married for 17 years - two children.
Pets? Peacock.
If you had a choice, what other job would you choose? Owner of a small art gallery.
What's your favorite hangout? Brutti's.
Favorite night out on the town? Wells Theater and a good, enjoyable movie.
Favorite food/drink? Mexican food, water.
Favorite movies/TV show? ``Dead Poet's Society'' ``Schindler's List'' ``Sister Act'' and ``I Love Lucy.''
Book you wish everyone would read? ``Gitanjali'' (song offerings) by Tagore.
Ideal vacation? Small, non-commercial island where the sky is blue and the water pure.
I can't resist? A cup of hot tea in the morning.
Few people know that I? Was very good at sports and track throughout my school and college years.
If you won the lottery what would you do/Buy? I would save some money for my children's education and establish an art institution to promote growth and development of young artists' minds.
What is the best advice you've been given and by whom? By my husband - to finish my master's degree.
What's the best thing about yourself? I am a good person at heart.
If you could trade places with anyone in the world, who would you be and why? I would trade places with my mother, to see how she completed her education to become a college teacher during the generation when males dominated society.
What achievements are you most proud of? I am the mother of two wonderful children.
Something you wish to say but haven't? At this time in my life, I am experiencing a different stage of emotional and spiritual consciousness. Right now, everything is a wonder, and I am uplifted as I look at life. My mind is open: It is like a fresh breeze has blown through.
I hope that (my paintings) are an experience of visual poetry that moves and flows within you and not just flat recreations in a frame. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JOHN H. SHEALLY II
One of Shikha Sartar's abstract interpretations is the focal point
of the stairwell in her home on Windy Point Drive in Suffolk.
by CNB