my story
Hello! I'm Riddhi Malhotra. I love painting seascapes and people. While I've been drawing all my life, I've only started selling my art in the last three years.
Throughout my childhood, I was always surrounded by art (having a talented and artistic mom inspires me even today!) My mom has always been crafty and creative, which has somehow made it’s way into me as well. I remember that as a child, I was so fond of stationery and craft supplies that I dreamed of one day owning a stationery store. My parents tell me that I wasn’t a messy child, but everywhere I had been, they would find little cut pieces of paper left over from some craft that I was into.
While today I would describe my art as bright, colourful, vibrant, modern paintings, they weren’t always that colourful. My art journey began one day when I was 8 and my grandfather asked me to pick a book for him to buy for me, and I picked this book called, “Learn to draw Portraits”. By the next day, I was obsessed with that book! Drawing portraits seemed like magic, and I wanted to learn that magic! I taught myself to look at a face and see it not as a face, but as a combination of lights and darks, of shadows and highlights. I learnt how to draw realistically, and I was addicted to getting the likeness of someone on paper. For a long time, (longer than I should have), I kept working in black and white. I was scared of colours, and would avoid trying them out by hiding behind the pretext of “Oh black and white is my style”.
It took joining a local art class for me to try out colours. I was taught the basics of how to control acrylic paint, and what it is like working on a canvas. I became bolder after seeing how easy it was to try a new medium, and that’s when my passion for trying out new materials began. While my favourite medium remains acrylics, since then I’ve tried my hand at charcoal, Ink, Coloured pencils, Inktense, Pastels, Oils and even digital painting.
For me, what I love about making art is the process. I love getting immersed in the task of putting paint to the canvas. My art is about happiness and freedom. It is about beauty and abundance. I love vibrant colours and clean lines. My favourite thing to do is painting on larger canvases, but I also paint smaller pieces for tabletops and office desks. I love writing about my art journey on my blog. You can subscribe to my newsletter to get a monthly update on my art journey, interesting things I’ve come across, and new projects and collections I’m working on.
GET IN TOUCH
​
​
I would be happy to create something original (Portraits/Landscapes/Still life) for you. If you like my style and would like something completely unique, email me.
​
Email: hello@riddhisartdesk.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Do You Sell Your Art?
​
​
Can I order a custom painting?
Yes, you can. Please write to me on hello@riddhisartdesk.com and we can discuss the details.
​
​
How do you ship your art?
I always package my art securely and beautifully, and add a few free goodies and a handwritten note for you to enjoy. For deliveries within India, I use Delhivery. For deliveries outside India, I use India Post, or Fedex/DHL for express deliveries.
​
​
What mediums do you work in?
I love working in acrylics and watercolors the most, but I also enjoy experimenting with all other mediums like graphite, charcoal, ink, colored pencils, pastels etc.
​
​
Do you teach painting?
I periodically conduct online workshops. If you'd like to be notified about upcoming workshops, please fill this form on my website.
Do you conduct one-on-one painting classes?
If you're interested in specialised painting classes, do write to me at hello@riddhisartdesk.com, and I'll see if we can work something out.
​
​
Do you have a YouTube channel?
No I don't! But you can find some tutorials of mine of my IGTV on my instagram handle @riddhisardesk. Also, my favourite YouTube artists who have helped me in the past as a beginner are Katie Jobling, Lachri, Kirsty Patridge. Check out their tutorials.
Which brands of acrylic paints do you recommend?
For acrylic painting, I would suggest Brustro or Camel for beginners. For intermediate and advanced level artists, Winsor & Newton (Galeria / Artists acrylic paints), Daler Rowney System 3, or Liquitex paints. Each of these brands can be mixed with each other, and you can have a variety in your collection to work with.
Which brands of watercolor paints do you recommend?
I personally prefer to use pans instead of tubes for watercolors. The Art Philosophy confection paint sets / Winsor and Newton Cotman series are great to begin painting with. If you have a larger budget, I would recommend Sennilier or Mission Gold watercolors, which are a delight to work with.
Which brushes do you recommend?
For watercolors, I recommend soft brushes, which are specifically designed to be used with watercolors, and can hold a lot of water. I use Pro Arte brushes, Daler Rowney Aquafine brushes and an assortment of other brands that I've collected over the years. For acrylics, I love Daler Rowney System 3 brushes in various sizes. I generally make smooth paintings, and so prefer soft brushes. I also found Brustro Green Gold brushes to be affordable and great for smooth paintings.
Make sure you keep your watercolor brushes separate from your acrylic and oil brushes, and always always wash them once you're done.
Which canvases / papers do you recommend?
I use a variety of brands of canvases. I specially love Canvasify, Picasso and Monte Mart for Canvases. For Watercolors, I prefer using 100% cotton watercolor paper. Arches is the best quality I've used, but it's quite expensive. You can try Brustro 100% cotton watercolor paper if you're a beginner.
I want to start selling my art. What steps should I follow?
First and foremost, make people fall in love with you art, your process and your personality before trying to get them to buy your pieces. Think like a buyer. Think about what makes you want to buy a piece, and what matters to you - whether it's the way an artist talks about their piece, or the way they present it, or just their personality. Remember that just making something available for sale doesn't sell it. Post truthfully and regularly, pull back the curtains on your struggles and achievements, and build a community of followers, who will then definitely convert into buyers. Be patient, and give it time.
How do you shoot and edit your timelapse videos?
I use my iPhone to shoot, and prop it up with a simple tripod stand that I got from Amazon. I edit my videos is Splice, which is a free and wonderful app for quick video editing.
​
​
How do you edit your photos?
I use the app Snapseed to edit photos. It's a wonderful must have for all artists/beginner photographers in my opinion.
How do I get more followers on Instagram?
By no means am I an expert in this. I periodically gain and lose hundreds of followers. The key is to not obsess over that number, and to consistently post engaging stuff. Think about what makes you stop and look at a picture on Instagram, and read the caption. Think like your followers. Use relevant hashtags to show up to new people. Like and comment on other artists' pictures, engage with people over DMs. Remember that 300 followers who are passionate about what you do is much better than having 3000 followers, gained inorganically who don't care about your stuff.
​
​
How should I price my art?
This is a very personal choice. Art is not my main source of income, so my paintings are fairly affordable. But there is a threshold I don't go below no matter what, because I'd rather keep the paintings for myself than to part with them for an amount I'm not comfortable with. There are always people who will think your art is too pricey, but I would suggest looking for other customers who value your art more, rather than dropping your prices. You will eventually find them :) Also, for practical advice on pricing art, there are many many videos on YouTube which explain the different ways of deciding a price.
​
​
How should I make time for art when I have a full time job?
I'm currently doing that, and have seen a lot of people juggle jobs / motherhood / other commitments and still do art successfully on the side. I've written a blog post about it that you can read here.
​
​
Can I, an Indian, sell on Etsy?
Yes you can! I've written a detailed blog post about my experience of selling art on Etsy here.
​
​
Can you suggest some good art books?
My favourite art book is called "Daily Painting" by Carol Marine. A detailed review of the book is here. Other must reads are "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" by Betty Edwards, which takes you through the basics of getting into art, and "Color" by Betty Edwards, which details out color theory and its application.
​
​
Where can I find good reference photos?
You can find references on royalty free websites like Pixabay, Unsplash, Pexels etc.
​
​
Can I recreate one of your paintings?
You can recreate my paintings for learning, but not for selling. In case you paint them and post on social media, do remember to tag me (@riddhisartdesk) in it as I'd be happy to see it :) For any other artists, always message and ask them before recreating their work.
​
For any other questions, please write to me on hello@riddhisartdesk.com