Sanjoy Das

You can call me Sanjoy...the giver of joy through ART. I was born in India, Meghalaya and I presently have a studio in Surrey, BC Canada. I am a Professional Artist , Educator and an Intern Architect specializing in custom designed residences. I work in various mediums-oil, watercolor, acrylic , pen & ink and airbrush.
I have a Bachelor's degree in Architecture and I am also a Certified Instructor for Art and Design. I have had three solo Art shows in Tsawwassen Art Centre, PoMoArts (Port Moody Art center) and Semiahmoo Art Society respectively. I have also participated in various juried & group exhibitions at the Surrey Art Gallery and Port Moody Art Centre. I frequently hold art workshops. 
I had absolutely no idea that when I boarded a train to Mumbai to pursue Architecture, I was actually taking the first steps into a direction of healing, self-awareness and mental health.
My area of study and practice of architecture and art were the mediums that propelled me towards healing and the exploration of the nature of the self, using sound as the principal behind my work. 
I work and paint intuitively and spontaneously. I strive to dis-identify from the mind and bring my awareness to the present moment. I uses the 5 senses - sight , hearing, touch , smell and taste in the making of my artwork to be alert and present. I am in meditation as I paint. I find Sound as everything and I considers my art as “frozen sound". I also enjoy creating, portraits, landscapes, figurative, surrealism, abstract paintings and graphic novel art. Creating art makes me alert and present, enabling me to live in the present moment. My objective is to bring this heightened sense of awareness into my art and everyday life and share this experience with the onlooker. 
My art is a culmination of study, practice and meditation on the effect of sound, color and prayer on the human body. I make attempts to express this experience through my art and writing.
The concept for my art is inspired form the Hindu tradition of Chakras in the Yoga practice. While yoga is often thought of as a means to help connect with our true nature, it can also be a way of helping us tap our creative selves. Meditation and yoga grant us access to our inner psyche that inspire creative ideas to emerge .With this practice one can be more fully connected you with one's creative mind, body, and soul.
My art work is a byproduct of meditation on this philosophy and Sadhana (daily practice). This experience has greatly enhanced my well-being and wish to share this experience via my art, writing and workshops. 
The aim is to dis-identify with the ego by bringing one's attention to the present moment. It is a spontaneous form of art striving to be free from the unobserved mind.
This form of objective art has developed a system of thought which makes us see the universe within us and ourselves as the Universe. Hindu experience owes to our ancient yogis the discovery and location of the centers of Energy-Chakras in the Human Body. In the Hindu tradition, chakras are vital energy centers whose main function is that they connect with the energies of the surrounding and transmit these energies to our bodies and vice versa. Each individual according to this practice is a manifestation of that energy, and the objects around us are the outcome of the same consciousness ever revealing itself in various modes.
The chakras have colors because they vibrate with different frequencies and their location in the body determines the color and function. 
The use of sound & colors for healing and therapeutic purposes has been prevalent in the past. It is something that was practiced and continues to be relevant to this day. Our ancestors observed sound as a source of life and the driving force of life's processes. Sound corresponds to health of the body, mind, and spirit.
Healing with sound was rediscovered in the beginning of 20th century and color therapy was approached from a scientific standpoint. Since then there have been many advances, for instance photo-dynamic therapy, which is used in cancer treatment. 
Regardless of one's age or gender, spiritual orientation or beliefs, one can learn how to manipulate their chakra energy with the use of color and breath work and use it to your advantage.
This lost Art form is a scientific method by which one can bring out his true potential that is inherent in him.
All the paintings and written material are pointers only, just like a finger pointing towards the moon! 
One has to look within!

Education:

Intern Architect AIBC 2018

BOABC Level 1 2013
Building Officials Association of British Columbia 

Provincial Instructors Diploma Program PIDP 2009
Vancouver Community College

Architectural Technology Courses 2003 
BCIT, Burnaby, BC

Bachelors of Architecture (B. Arch) 1998 
J.J College of Architecture
University of Mumbai, India

Awards & Distinctions:

Year 2019 Annual Abstract Art Competition/ lightspace&timonlineartgallery/ Los 
Angeles/USA (Recipient of Special Merit Award)
 

Exhibitions:

Year 2023 Solo Art exhibition at Semiahmoo art center Harnessing the power of Sound for art 
& well being"
Year 2021 Solo Art exhibition at PomoArts" Harnessing the power of colour for well being"
Year 2020 Online Tribute Art exhibition for covid victims (25 paintings ,Mixed media)
Year 2019 Annual Abstract Art Competition/ lightspacetimeartgallery/ Los 
Angeles/USA (Recipient of Special Merit Award)
Year 2019 Spirit Of India Art Exhibition/Port Moody Art Centre/ B.C /Canada
Year 2017 Group Exhibition SAAG (South Asian Artists Guild /Passionate Colours Surrey Art 
Gallery/Surrey/ B.C /Canada 
Year 2016 Juried Exhibition/ Memento Mori/ Surrey Art Gallery/Surrey/ B.C/CA
Year 2015 Group Exhibition / Views from the South Bank: Histories, Memories Myth/Curator 
Jordan Storm /Surrey Art Gallery/Surrey/ B.C /Canada
Year 2012 Solo Exhibition / In search of the Miraculous/ Tsawwassen Art Centre 

Media coverage 
“Healing with Art by Janis Cleugh Tricity News
“Surrey artist's paintings help him heal after cousin's COVID-caused death":By Tom Zillich Surrey Now Leader
“Artist brings Miraculous exhibit to Tsawwassen: by Dave Wills- Delta Optimist
Urban Asian painting exhibition inspired by Sound Featured artist 2023

 

Professional/Teaching Experience:

Instructor- Design Faculty 2010-2013
Kwantlen University,
Richmond, BC

Visual College of Art & Design(VCAD) 2010-2013 
Vancouver, BC

Teaching experience in Interior Design and Architectural detailing courses

Semiahmoo Art Society 2023
Art work shops

Artistic Influences:

Tantra art, Traditional Hindu art, Van Gogh, Klimt, Dali, Georgia O keeffe, H R Giger

Tags:

Canadian art, chakras, abstract art, surrealism, water colour, sacred art.