Shyam Karri
Shyam Karri emerged as one of India’s few contemporary artists elevating watercolor from a mere technique to a soulful metaphor for life itself. His works are visual haikus—poetic, he is more than a watercolourist, a philosopher with a brush, transforming fluid pigment into contemplative spaces of connection. His work emerges not from technical virtuosity but from an acceptance of life’s spontaneous beauty: where a few strokes and open canvas can hold the weight of stillness, joy, and presence.
The Beginnings
Shyam Karri was born in 1990. Growing up in Visakhapatnam, surrounded by seashores, paddy fields, and rich biodiversity, he developed an early affinity for the subtle beauty in everyday life.
He dabbled in poetry, scribbled, and explored sculpture as a kid expressing his love for little details in life. “I have always strived to search for harmony amidst the chaos,” he would later reflect, “and I must’ve been 15-16 when I realised art strikes the most harmonious balance of them all.” Art wasn’t just a hobby, it became his compass, guiding him through life’s deeper questions.
Architecture and Design
Shyam pursued architecture and furniture design, fields that honed his eye for structure and form. Yet, beneath the blueprints and prototypes, a restlessness stirred. He yearned for something more fluid, more alive.
Zen and Watercolors
“I did not begin watercolors with an intent to become an artist,” Shyam admits. “My love for the medium flowered gradually as I kept persuading my curiosity.”
“Watercolour helps me practice Zen,” he says, “to become attentive to ‘the presence’ and express the moment as it is.” Self-taught through relentless experimentation, he balanced control and intuition, mind and heart,
rationality and emotion. His process echoed the ancient philosophy of Wu Wei—effortless action—where he painted directly, without heavy sketching, letting the brush glide in meditative flow.
Wild life and Raw emotions
Over the next decade, Shyam Karri emerged as one of India’s few contemporary artists elevating watercolor from a mere technique to a soulful metaphor for life itself. His works are visual haikus—poetic, pared-down expressions of nature’s quiet drama. Elephants lumber through misty savannas, koi fish swirl in ethereal ponds, and wildlife gazes back with ancient wisdom, all rendered in layers of translucent glow.
Mind and Heart
Today, Shyam is recognized as one of India’s few contemporary artists elevating watercolor not just as a medium, but as a metaphor for life. He practices art as Zen: balancing control and surrender, mind and heart, intuition and intention. Each painting is a meditation, demanding total presence, an engaging of every cell, not just the hand. The result? Artwork that breathes stillness and invites you to pause.
Exhibits
‘Kaivalya’ (Chennai, Nov 2022): A solo exhibition titled Kaivalya explored the sensation of joy through mostly animal motifs rendered minimally against blank space—an embodiment of pure emotion and Zen stillness.
‘Prana – The Breath of Life’ (Chandigarh, 2025): His solo show in the region, held at 105arts Art Gallery, featured 70 nature-inspired watercolors. Curator Mehak Bhan described them as emotionally resonant works that evoke quiet reflection and elemental.
Google Ananta (Bangalore) He sold about 20 art works to Google office Bangalore.
