Yum Yiu ‘25

Staff Writer

Based in Wallingford, Connecticut, Rashmi Talpade is an artist who specializes in photography and ceramics. Her work encompasses different mediums and she is famous for the photo collages that she has created. Her works are in the permanent collection of the New Britain Museum of American Art in Connecticut and the Museum of Modern Art in Bhopal India. As I am taking a studio art course this semester, I was invited to her lecture about her art works. There are a few valuable lessons that I have learned from it. 

Art does not have to be created with a grand purpose. Rashmi constantly photographs everything around her: she sees beauty and art in everything and she simply takes photographs to record her life. The collages that she has made are nothing more than the scattered pieces of her memory. She enjoys the process of making the arts, and she thinks the process is more important than the result. From her perspective, even mistakes are just “happy accidents.” Her thoughts and views inspire me. Personally, I like to strictly follow the plan that I have and mistakes are unbearable to me. If the mistake is minor, I might be able to ignore it and pretend that I do not see it. However, I will always remember the mistake, and keep reminding myself of the imperfection. If I make a major mistake, I will most likely redo the whole project, as I cannot accept the fact that my plan is completely ruined. Through the eyes of Rashmi, I am able to see art in a whole new perspective. She tells us how she makes mistakes all the time, and she does not always like the result of her work. Sometimes, she will even go back to the mistakes that she made a few months ago and cover them up. It is fascinating to me that her acceptance of mistakes, and her creative ability to make use of the mistakes. I hope that, perhaps for my next art project, I could also accept my mistakes, instead of treating them as the end of the world. 

Another thing about Rashmi’s art perspective is her lack of attachment to her individual pieces. She says that she always has the big picture in her mind. She thinks it is important to not get attached to the individual pieces which might ruin the big picture. Sometimes, she will wait for months before she comes back to certain parts of the art. She believes that after a few months, she will have “grown” from the attachment. She knows that not everything will be suitable for the big picture in her mind, so she has to give up her personal preference for the greater goal that she has in mind. To me, it almost sounds like a way of growing up. Despite our efforts, not everything can be perfect. Being able to learn from the mistakes and move on is how you grow up from the past. I did not think that there is the possibility of growing up in terms of your mindset for art.

The talk was short. It is probably another ordinary talk that Rashmi gives to some college students. However, I can’t stop wondering how many students are also inspired like I was?

Featured image courtesy of artofrashmi.net