IIFA India, Royal Drawing School
This was an exceptional residency run by the Royal Drawing School, a leading institution in London dedicated to observational drawing and the development of contemporary drawing practice. The school is known for its rigorous teaching, strong emphasis on looking and seeing, and its supportive environment for emerging artists.
It brought together four artists who travelled to India to work as tutors at a university near Delhi, while also having dedicated time and space to develop our own artistic practices.
The residency lasted three months, and during this time we were based at the Sanskriti Kendra artist residency campus in New Delhi. Sanskriti is a well-established cultural foundation in India that supports international artist residencies, offering dedicated studio spaces, accommodation, and access to its museums, gardens, and workshop facilities. The campus is set within a peaceful, green environment on the outskirts of the city, and is designed to encourage exchange between visiting artists, scholars, and local craftspeople.
We shared a studio space on a rotating basis, alongside our teaching responsibilities. Alongside our individual practice, we worked closely as a team to design and deliver engaging, open-ended classes, which also became a shared space for learning, exchange, and experimentation.
Having this extended period in India was incredibly enriching for my practice. I was able to explore ideas through colour in a much more confident and instinctive way, responding directly to the vibrancy of my surroundings. The intensity of colour in Delhi and beyond felt completely immersive—it shaped the way I worked and encouraged a more expressive approach to mark-making.
Although I had previously spent time in Bangladesh, this experience felt like a new and important step in deepening my understanding of working within different environments and cultures. The opportunity to live and work in Delhi for three months allowed me to fully absorb the energy of the place, and it had a lasting impact on my practice.
Once back in the UK, our group came together again for an exhibition at the Daniel Raphael Gallery in Marylebone, London. It was a valuable way to reflect on the work developed during the residency and to share the outcomes with a wider audience.
This trip opened my eyes to the expressive possibilities of colour and form. I was deeply inspired by the confidence with which colour is used in India - in everyday life, in textiles, in architecture, and in artistic practice. There is a natural ease and joy in the way colour is embraced, which felt very present in the people I met and the way they approached creativity.
It made me reflect on the contrast with my own experiences in the UK, where colour and expression can sometimes feel more restrained. This residency stayed with me as a reminder of how powerful and joyful colour can be when it is used freely and instinctively.