BIOGRAPHY
Harsh Agrawal is a plein-air landscape artist living and working in London, originally from a village called Rairangpur in India. Growing up in a conservative family, Harsh overcame numerous challenges to achieve success as an artist in the entertainment industry. His credits include "Coco", "Toy Story", "Avengers: End Game", "Star Wars" and other Oscar-winning films. Despite his success, Harsh’s passion for traditional painting led him to switch careers.
With a leap of faith to focus on his art, Harsh now creates stunning plein-air landscape paintings that capture the beauty and stories of the natural world. He draws inspiration from his travels and everyday life experiences, to create captivating works of art. Harsh's work has been exhibited at various galleries & art fairs, including the Mall Galleries in London, USA and Singapore.
Harsh's journey has taught him the importance of determination, hard work and humility. Through his unique perspective and dedication to plein-air painting, Harsh continues to create captivating works that transport viewers to a certain location and evoke a sense of wonder and beauty.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My landscape paintings aim to capture the essence of the world around us, while also exploring the expressive potential of the medium itself. I am interested in light and shadow, the interplay of colour, textures and patterns found in the environment. My goal is to create artworks that are both aesthetically pleasing and emotionally resonant.
I usually travel and wander around the city or a park and stumble upon a location that provokes me to meditate through the plein-air painting process. Environment around us is a symphony of motion, people passing by, birds chirping, cars honking, varied scents and changing weather. I like to immerse myself in these surroundings and make intuitive decisions. It is akin to long exposure photography, but more human, capturing a chunk of time in one frame. Throughout the painting process, I pick and choose what elements to incorporate in my work, sharing my personal experiences and stories. I try to explore interconnectedness between environment and people. It challenges me to consider my place in the world and the impact I have on our surroundings, often revealing joy and innocence. It is my hope that my paintings inspire the viewer to appreciate and protect this world that we call home.
AWARDS & EXHIBITIONS
2024
Upcoming in September, Invitational at Plein Air Smokies, USA
July, Michael Harding Award for Outstanding Watercolour at Summer Exhibition in The Gallery At Green & Stone, UK
July, Exhibited for Summer Exhibition at The Gallery At Green & Stone, UK
July, Second Place in En Plein Air at Windsor Castle by Princes Charles Trust, UK
July, Special Mention Of Jury Award at Biennial International Prize by the City of Fabriano, Italy
June, Simon McNab Watercolour Award at Chelsea Art Society Annual Summer Exhibition, UK
June, Exhibited with Chelsea Art Society Annual Summer Exhibition, UK
June, Visitor Choice Award at Broadway Arts Festival Paint Out, UK
May, Faculty at Plein Air Convention and Expo (PACE), USA
May, Honourable Award in International Masters of Watercolour Association (IMWA) and Alliance for A New World Americas International, Online
May, National Watercolour Society Online Member Virtual Exhibition (NWS), USA
April, Elected Member of Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours (RI), UK
April, Exhibited with American Watercolor Society (AWS) Annual Exhibition, USA
April, Exhibited as Candidate with (RI) Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours 212th exhibition at Mall Galleries, UK
March, Invitational at Lighthouse Plein-Air Festival, USA
Ongoing, Selected works represented by Beaux Arts Bath, UK
2023
November, Exhibited at San Diego Watercolour Society Plein Air Show, USA
October, Quick Draw Winner at En-Plein Air Texas, USA.
October, Spirit of San Angelo Award at En-Plein Air Texas, USA.
October, Invitational at En-Plein Air Texas, USA.
October, Exhibited with 150 Finalist at Broadway Arts Festival, UK.
September, Exhibited at Watercolour International 6, Greece
September, Exhibiting at Royal Society of Marine Artist exhibition at Mall Galleries, UK
September, Invited Artist to exhibit at The Gallery, Holt, UK
August, Exhibited at Qingdao International Watercolour Exhibit, China
July, Group Exhibition at Paint Out Norfolk, UK
July, Judges Commendation Award at Paint Out Norfolk, UK
July, Michael Harding Watercolours Award at Paint Out Norfolk, UK
June, First Place in LPAPA Waterworks Exhibit, USA
June, People’s Choice Award in LPAPA Waterworks Exhibit, USA
June, AWS Associate Members Online Exhibition, USA
June, Exhibited with Chelsea Art Society, UK
May, Participated in Plein Air Convention & Expo (PACE), USA
April, Exhibited with Bath Society of Artists, UK
April, ChaoShan Award for (RI) Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours 211th exhibition at Mall Galleries, UK
February, Juried Semi-Finalist for LPAPA’s 19th Best of Plein Air Exhibition, USA
2022
November, Published in Maida Unveiled Magazine, UK
September, Second Place for Plein Air Paint Out for Contemporary Art Fair in Surrey, UK
September, Group Exhibition at Contemporary Art Fair in Surrey, UK
July, Second Place in En Plein Air at Windsor Castle by Princes Charles Trust, UK
ILM, Texture & Groom Artist for ABBA Voyage 3D Experience in London, Singapore
ILM, Lead Digital Artist for Jurrasic World Dominion, Singapore
2021
ILM, Digital Artist for Free Guy, Singapore
ILM, Lookdev Artist for Jungle Cruise, Singapore
2019
June, Group Exhibition at My Art Space for Pulau Ubin, Singapore
ILM, Lookdev Artist for Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker, Singapore
ILM, Digital Artist for Six Underground, Singapore
ILM, Texture Artist for Avengers Endgame, Singapore
2018
PIXAR, Character Shading TD for Toy Story 4, USA
2017
PIXAR, Character Shading TD for Coco, USA
2016 & earlier
Group Exhibition at Jawahar Kala Kendra, India
Group Exhibition at Jaipur Literature Festival, India