Arts...Travels...Writing

Starting the year with an Art Week is always an excellent idea. And this year, I am so glad that I could attend Art Stage, which I feel is even more amazing than the last one I've seen. There seem to be more ingenious installations and art works, more interactivity and greater variety too with over 150 galleries from all over the globe including some from the Middle East, Tel Aviv, Bogota, etc. Because there is just so much to absorb though, one day, let alone one afternoon, is definitely not enough to cover all the great work on exhibit. While we (I went with an artist aunt) could not check out all the galleries, I'm already utterly impressed with what we've seen so far. Here are my top picks from those we have covered. It goes without saying that since art is for the most part subject to one's interpretation and personal experience, my pick is clearly subjective and reflects my own preferences:) Damien Hirst, known for his polka dots, has this shiny metal work on...

Sharing my photo "Bridge Over Calm Water", which BBC Travel has picked for its Instagram feed: Bridge leading to Punakha Dzong - one of the oldest and most majestic dzongs of Bhutan, and very panoramic too sitting at the confluence of two great rivers. https://instagram.com/p/9NZpuTxwby/?taken-by=bbc_travel #PunakhaDzong #Bhutan #BBCTravelInstagram

Last May, I went with a group of photographers on a travel photography trip to Bhutan, one of the most scenic places I've ever been to. The place is such that it has inspired our team to come up with a travel photography coffee table book that will benefit one of the village schools we have visited. Collectively, we have hundreds and possibly thousands of beautiful photos. Unfortunately we cannot include all these in the book, and so we have invited a panel of photography experts to do the selection objectively - the photos were pooled together by theme, and without any identifying mark to keep the selection process unbiased. We are now close to launching the book, targeted in early October. More details of this coming soon... One of my favourite photos from the trip, below, is selected for the book :-) Stairway To Zen And here are a few more photos from that wonderful trip: The snow capped Tibetan peaks on touchdown A bridge in Paro Tasiccho Dzong in T...