We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Apoorva Gupta. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Apoorva below.
Apoorva, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
As a child, I was always inclined towards painting and drawing rather than sports or academics. My teachers told me that I have a natural talent. But like typical South-Asian families, my parents and even I thought it was just a hobby. Never did I think it could be a profession.
I resumed painting in 2023 after a difficult childbirth in 2019 and COVID. I was mentally exhausted with alone at home with my husband and an infant. So, when my son started going to school, I found some free time and started painting again. Then I found the art of mandalas. I saw some videos online and started making mandalas whenever I got time to paint. I revived my Instagram account (dormant since 2019) and started posting my very poor videos and photos (or so I thought).
The first time I realised that I could pursue this professionally was when I received a message from a follower on Instagram asking about the price of a mandala I painted.
I had no idea what to answer. I just gave a random figure, covering my costs and maybe some additional bucks over it, and the person agreed to buy it.
I sent it out, and then they bought a few other items too. This gave me the courage to go for my first exhibition at an artists’ collective in New Delhi, and the response I got there was an eye-opener. I realised a lot of people liked what I made and were ready to pay for it. I sold a few paintings and made some profit at my first exhibition. That was it. I was awestruck and I realised that yes, I can pursue this “hobby” of mine professionally.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I am a self-taught dot mandala artist. I started painting mandalas in October 2023 after watching a YouTube video. I had made acrylic canvas paintings before, but mandalas were just something totally out of my comfort zone. I practiced and then decided to revive my art account on Instagram after a 5-year gap. Now with over 4,000 followers on the platform, Instagram is my primary source of sale, and it made me realize that I am good at what I do, and I can earn a living out of it. What started as a hobby has now become a small business for me. I believe what sets me apart from other artists is that I make dot mandalas, which are mostly inspired by nature, and I try to keep each of my pieces unique and different, in terms of the color palette and design. I love making mandalas in rainbow palettes, and these palettes have now somewhat become a signature style. All items in my rainbow palettes are the most popular and bestseller. I have done some customized pieces where I match the colors as per the interiors of the client’s home, and have received great feedback on those, too. We have a lot of returning clients, who are sure that we understand their requirements and deliver as per their needs. I think the growth I have seen, with no prior knowledge of social media marketing or dot mandalas and no training, is what makes me proud of myself. I feel it may seem easy on the outside, but it isn’t. As a part-time artist, with a full-time corporate job and being a caregiver for an autistic son, I am proud of the risk I have taken by pursuing this art. My son loves my paintings and sometimes paints along, and my husband has been the backbone, providing support and courage. I want people to think of our brand as their family. And our paintings as an addition to that family circle. We love to meet our clients, understand their homes and their needs, and then make a painting that will perfectly fit in that puzzle. If you want a one-of-a-kind dot mandala that expresses your and your family’s feelings, we are the brand to choose.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I started my Instagram account in 2019 because I wanted to show my art to everyone. At that time, I used to make acrylic pour paintings. But within 3-4 months, I had to pause painting and thus the account as I became pregnant and had a high-risk pregnancy. Then life took over, and I forgot about painting and the art account. Then, in June 2023, I thought of going back to painting. I started with some basic watercolor paintings and then found dot mandalas in October 2023. I had 32 followers on Instagram at that time. In a year, I reached 1,000, and now I have over 4,000 followers. How? No fancy reels (I don’t shoot a lot of content), no ads, almost zero expenditure. Consistency. Just posting daily. Whether you post a picture, a story, or a reel. Every day, your account should have new content for your followers. This is the easiest way to grow on Instagram. Then you can find some good collaborators who can help you grow further. But even then, your content is everything. Make good things, click good photos, write good captions, and ultimately, you have good content. I have a degree in Journalism, so I used all my knowledge of good words and writing, and I think that helped. Another key aspect is engagement with other similar accounts. You cannot expect to get followers and likes, and comments if you are not liking or commenting on others’ work. That is how the algorithm works. So my advice is to keep your account busy with good content and engage with fellow accounts, and you will surely see growth. I am not a social media expert, but this has worked for me till now and I think it is a good strategy with very little investment.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
I think first, artists and creatives need to support each other. If we do not stick together, society will never value us as a group. People need to accept that if someone is an artist, that is not just a hobby but a profession. The stigma around “creative professions” has to go. It is time for society to understand that this can be a source of income and a good one at that. This will encourage kids to pursue creative fields without any taboo. Also, society needs to be aware of what goes into making one painting, print, or any other piece of art. The time, the trial and error, the cost of goods, and the energy and skill that each artist puts into a painting cannot be put in financial terms. Therefore, they need to understand why a painting is more expensive than a digital print. Or why a handmade and unique product is valued more than a mass-produced factory product. A lot of people have told me that my paintings are expensive for them or that my charges are high, but then they realise that my work is 100 times better than anything else on the market at a lower price, and then they come back and buy what I am offering. So, as a society, if people understood the challenges artists or creatives face and how difficult it is for them to produce what they do, they can be more supportive and open to accepting what we offer. Also, visiting art galleries, exhibitions, and appreciating the works is so encouraging that you have no idea. I do a lot of exhibitions only because I love to meet people and listen to their views on my paintings. I also think governments can help by providing more funding and resources to artists and celebrating artistic achievements.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artbyapoorva/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artbyapoorva/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/104423543/admin/dashboard/
Image Credits
All photos by artbyapoorva