I joined Fountainhead School in Grade 5 and since then I am passionate about Visual Arts. I decided to choose my strength and Creativity component of CAS as a platform to take a step forward to preserve the identity of Ajanta Caves from getting extinct.

LO1: Identify your own strengths and develop areas for personal growth: I was always attracted to paintings of Ajanta Caves, Before in grade 8 and 9 I have made some paintings from there in acrylic and watercolours. Last year I tried making a painting of Bodhisattva Padmapani, one of the most iconic paintings of Ajanta Caves by firstly preparing the coarse surface of the 2.5×4 feet 8mm ply with the help of two primitive tools: chisel and hammer. The rough surface was coated with a thick layer of clay and cow dung mixed with rice busk and animal hair. A final layer of lime was applied later on to produce a smooth polished surface on which I painted while in fresco technique; where the painting is done on a wet surface using natural colors. My older practice became my strength and helped me create this painting faster.

LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process: Art is a process, in which a single mistake can ruin the complete artwork, being a fresco painting the surface was completely wet, and in the initial part we all Art mates were working on it. I found that the strokes on eyebrows and eyes were very bold but found a solution to create a soft stroke without any marks left on the painting, by this situation I learned a new skill that will help me in my further artworks in the medium used.

LO3:Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience: Before creating this artwork, there was a lengthy process of investigation and research on the topic, I took permission from my IBDP VA teacher, where I started with the sketching part and my peers joined with me in creating this mural.

LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences: While creating a painting it is required that you are consistent and I had to make the pigments again and again. The mural took a month to complete because I have to paint it during my free slots and breaks.

LO5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively: We all are Visual Art students whenever we get time we come to the VA room, to complete our pending works. Sometimes we had different free slots, but we used to come and work on the mural accordingly.

LO6: Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance: The paints used around the world for making paintings are basically plastic, in producing these paint, much carbon dioxide is produced. By using Natural paints, global warming is reduced. I decided to create the mural out of Natural Resources by extracting certain colors like blue from gemstone (lapis lazuli), Black from Kajal by burning lamp, brown from the ochre flower, and white from White lime.

LO7: Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions: The action which I have taken, I consider as an opportunity to spread awareness about how natural colors is useful to our environment and better for our future.

– Arjun Agarwal