Sushila Oliphant draws her inspiration from her roots in Hampden Highlands, Maine where she was taught to paint and draw by her grandmother during the harsh winter months. She was further inspired by her travels to Arizona, Colorado, New England and extensive adventurous trips through Chiapas and the Yucatan in Mexico.
Sushila is known as a spiritual artist. She spent many years in an ashram in South Miami, studying Vedantic Yoga under her guru, Swami Jyotirmayananda, and illustrated his books and monthly magazine as well as the website. She learned graphic arts there. In the ashram her art became meditation, a tool for higher consciousness. The painter and the painting merge.
This is where "Saraswati", the image shown here, came from – through a vision, a deep meditation and quest for oneness. Saraswati is a Yogic / Hindu Goddess representing wisdom and she rules over the arts, creativity and speech. The color blue is symbolic of transcendence – cosmic consciousness; the swan - her animal companion - is pure mind which is necessary for transcendence. In that state, one rises like a beautiful swan above the mountainous obstacles, and one flows effortlessly like a stream, unhindered by its rocks.
The artist also does digital art, pen and ink, pastels, colored pencils, graphite, watercolor, acrylic painting on found wood and photography. Nature, Native American cultures, and Eastern spirirual art are her favorite subjects. Sushila has developed her own line of Native American, Mayan and Yoga t-shirts from her artwork. In 1996, Sushila combined her talent in the arts with her computer skills and started her own successful graphic design company, Harmonic Designs. Sushila creates brochures, logos, banners, fliers, web design and much more.
Ms. Oliphant has won many awards for her work in various art shows in Maine, Colorado and Florida throughout the years. |
