Meet Deepti Malik
For Deepti Malik, art has always been a part of her life. Long before she picked up a paintbrush, she was the kid doodling in the margins of her notebooks and drawing diagrams in science class. Drawing came naturally to her, becoming a quiet thread that followed her through every stage of life.
It wasn’t until much later that art became more than a hobby. Deepti earned her master’s degree in Food and Nutrition and worked as a dietician before moving to the United States after getting married. Looking for a way to bring creativity back into her everyday life, she turned to paper crafting. What started as a hobby quickly grew into new opportunities, including teaching online classes and designing stamps for U.S. based paper crafting companies.
Her path to oil painting came from an unexpected place: Arts in the Heart of Augusta. While attending the festival, Deepti saw local artists selling their work and began wondering if she could do the same. With some encouragement from her husband, who believed she could paint, she decided to take a chance. In 2023, she bought her first set of oil paints and officially stepped into the world of fine art.
Today, Deepti’s work centers around wildlife, especially birds. Her inspiration is often right outside her own backyard. Each morning, she spends time watching the birds around her, paying attention to their movements, behavior and calls. Many of the birds she observes eventually find their way onto her canvases.
“I want my art to serve as a bridge that connects people to nature and wildlife,” Deepti says. For her, painting is about more than simply capturing what a bird looks like. She hopes her work reminds people how grounding, important and calming it can be to be surrounded by living things.
That sense of calm is also a big part of what art means to Deepti personally. Painting is her happy place. When she works, she feels a sense of peace and comfort, as if everything around her has come to a standstill and the only movement left is that of her paintbrush.
Her creative process reflects that same sense of exploration. Deepti works with oil paints, inks and texture paste, allowing the materials to help guide the direction of each piece. Sometimes she begins with a specific subject in mind, while other times the subject develops naturally as she works. Her paintings often combine abstract backgrounds with realistic oil painted details, creating a balance between the two styles.
She especially enjoys building up layers in her work. Brushstrokes, stenciled effects and other textures come together to create pieces with plenty of depth.
While creativity plays a major role in her process, Deepti also puts a strong emphasis on developing her technical skills. She never formally attended art school, but that has not stopped her from learning. She continues to seek out resources, study fine art techniques and push herself to improve.
For Deepti, becoming an artist has been a reminder that talent is only part of the equation. The rest comes from showing up and putting in the work.
“I’ve always known I had the talent to make art, but talent alone isn’t enough to become an artist,” she says. “You have to work and work hard to learn every detail and every skill.”
That mindset has helped shape her journey so far, from selling her very first piece of art to being selected for the Sense of Place Exhibition. Deepti says she is proud and thankful for both the big and small milestones along the way.
Her family has also played an important role in her creative journey. Her husband and son are her biggest supporters, and sometimes her biggest critics. She admits she usually ignores their critiques, but every once in a while, they get it right. In fact, one suggestion from her family led her to create a painting of a specific subject that eventually sold.
Looking ahead, Deepti has one simple goal: “My only goal is to keep painting until I die :)”
She also hopes her work can grow into something bigger. Over time, she wants to use her art to raise awareness about birds and their conservation, particularly for endangered species that are often overlooked. She hopes to become a voice for them through her paintings.
Her advice for artists who are just getting started is just as straightforward. Keep going. Keep working on your skills. Most importantly, keep making art, even when the finished piece doesn’t turn out the way you imagined.
Outside of painting, Deepti enjoys spending time with her 10 year old son, who has a creative streak of his own. She loves watching his imagination grow and admiring his artwork. She is also a fan of binge watching thriller series and, most of all, traveling and making memories with her husband and son.
From doodling in school notebooks to painting the birds she sees in her own backyard, Deepti’s artistic journey has taken a few unexpected turns. Her story is a reminder that creativity doesn’t always follow a straight path. Sometimes it waits for you to find it again, and sometimes all it takes is a little encouragement, a set of paints and the courage to see what happens next.
