Born in Ahmedabad in 1958, Poonam Bevli Sahi studied graphic design and set up her own design studio, Facet Design. The company has, over the years, produced corporate dossiers and other communication material. A special interest is the illustration of children’s books.
Poonam has been painting professionally to critical acclaim for several years. She has been exhibited a number of times in India and abroad, with her paintings forming a part of several private collections around the world.
Poonam’s work has been shown at the prestigious Lalit Kala Akademi in Delhi. In 2003, she was given the honour of being the first Indian artist to exhibit her show Frames within Frames at the Sofitel Atrium Gallery at Melbourne, Australia. She participated in a group exhibition at the Centre of Punjabi Literature and Art, New Delhi, and in a group exhibition in Singapore. Alliance Francaise de Delhi exhibited Poonam’s work along with others in their gallery at the opening of their new building.
Poonam said that she chose art as a career as a result of her upbringing.
“I was always in art because of the exposure my mother gave me. She used to paint and my sister did too. So that was the environment I grew up in,” she said.
Poonam’s desire to paint emerged from a quest for change and self expression. She works best with oil on board as it lends itself to a certain raw texture that she prefers.
Her works reveal her Buddhist leanings and are replete with the elements of India: sarees, colours, spirituality and serenity. There is perhaps a social content embedded within her oeuvre too.
Her paintings emerge as a series on a particular theme, with a leitmotif such as the lotus, frames within frames, masks, angels, and moon etc. Poonam is most comfortable with figures and it is the female form that she is compelled to portray. In her canvasses the woman surfaces, sometimes with a Madonna-like intensity, sometimes in the guise of a sadhvi, sometimes wrapped in the solitude of an individual who is content to live within her own isolation.
Poonam explained, “my style is essentially figurative but I do occasionally have adventure in art. I am at the moment working on a series that combines digital with oil, so traditional with funk... but my style remains identifiable.”
Breaking Australia was not so hard for Poonam, since art and talent travel easily. She explained,
“Art is universal. There was much curiosity about an Indian artist since there have not been many who have exhibited. But the reactions are pretty much the same as in India.”
She found no particular challenges in setting up her company.
“Clients came mainly through word of mouth. One satisfied client brings in others. Now because of the electronic media, there has been an impact on the printed work though.”
Facet Design does graphic design, printing, publishing, websites, documents, social media, and animation. “We work mainly with the development sector,” Poonam commented.
Poonam’s studio was selected by Lord Desai to design and create the brochure for the unveiling of the Mahatma Gandhi statue earlier this year in Parliament Square. She recalled,
“A publisher friend I had worked with on a project recommended us since they did not have the time to take it on. So, since we love challenges, we took it on. We had a tough deadline but we delivered. I must say, Lord Desai is a completely lovely person, so utterly simple and accessible.”
A lot of design studios in India have folded, but Poonam has kept hers going, running it single-handed, to boot.
“I like to believe that we are an easy studio to work with. We try and become an extension of the organisation we are working with. We are also very particular about meeting our deadlines and quality. We have great integrity as an organisation. We are still working with our first client...from 20 years ago.”
But there is one challenge.
“Keeping up to date with technology. Our work is technology driven, so it becomes important to have a young mind which is receptive to a rapidly changing world.”
Poonam still paints, but finding time is not easy.
“I have to steal time. I enjoy it so much and it relaxes me, almost like meditation. I paint in my office, so I always have an incomplete canvas lying around challenging me to finish it.
Poonam Bevli Sahi is always busy, combining work with caring for her family. She looks elegant and calm. She practises yoga regularly in her home and is at a proficient level. She even manages a property portfolio!
“Everyone has 24 hours in a day. Its how you use the time that makes the difference,” she ended, thoughtfully.
