This month we are featuring Mr. Anup Bhandari, a very talented Nepali artist who graduated from the University of Texas at Tyler and resides in Longview, Texas.
“Art is something that I use to show my feelings to the world”, says Anup when we asked him about how he defines art.
Mr. Bhandari loved to paint since his school days but he got into painting as a professional after coming to the United States. He says his father, late Achyut Bhandari, encouraged him very much to pursue his field of interest. He did his schooling from Budhanilkantha School in Kathmandu and came to the United States in 1999 for higher education. He attended Kilgore College and graduated with an associate degree in Fine Arts. After that, he continued his education at University of Texas at Tyler, where he received a full scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts.
His apartment is filled with beautiful paintings, lot of which give out a message of peace to the world. His art is very admired by everybody who comes to his apartment or see the paintings at the local art gallery. Local television stations have featured him and several newspapers have published articles about his work. Three of his paintings have been chosen for permanent collections at the Longview Museum of Fine Arts.
“I was very much inspired by the work of Jackson Pollock and I am still learning”, says Anup when we asked him about his favorite artist.
Anup loves to paint and is always working hard to bring his canvases to life. Painting has become a means of living for him but it does not end there. His paintings have been parts of several humanitarian deeds as well. He helped raise fund for helping the victims of Tsunami by donating his paintings for sale. He has been donating his paintings every year to various organizations that sell the paintings and use the money to help Nepali schoolchildren get education.
He has participated in several art exhibitions in different parts of Texas. He has taken part in many art competitions and won awards too. There are many of his paintings hung on the walls of local restaurants in Longview. Many of his paintings are at private collections, where they adorn the walls of several homes across the nation.
Now living in Kilgore with his wife, Astha Tuladhar – who loves to paint as well, Anup is working hard to create his own niche among the local artists. Recently graduated from UT Tyler, he has decided to take a study break for about a year, which he hopes to utilize to organize exhibitions in bigger cities across the state of Texas. He plans to go back to college for his Masters degree in Fine Arts next year.
Reminiscing the past days as an international student in Texas he told us that living in a far-away foreign land is challenging but he takes it as a big learning experience rather than hardship. He says, “life is hard abroad but it prepares us well for life”.
We wish him Good luck with his work and thank him for the time he set aside to talk with us.
Here are some of Anup’s paintings. Click to enlarge the photos.
Brief Bio
Full Name: Anup Bhandari
DOB : March 8, 1980
Birth Place : Hetauda
Parents: Achyut Bhandari and Nirmala Bhandari
Spouse: Astha Tuladhar
Current Residence : Kilgore, Texas
- Education:
- Bachelor of Fine Arts, University of Texas at Tyler, Tyler, Texas
- Associate in Arts, Kilgore College, Kilgore, Texas
- Honors/Awards:
- Second Place – OWA-CHITO Art Show 2009 in Oklahoma
- Twin City Mayors Art Competition Arkansas (Purchase Award and Honorable Mention)
- 3 Paintings chosen for permanent collection at Longview Museum of Fine Arts
Contact: [email protected]
Website: yessy.com/anupastha