ARKA ARCHIVES
A Pilgrimage in Ink.
Distilled architectural memory drawn by hand.
FEATURED WORK
'COSMIC EYE'
Collection: Celestial Silence
the artist
The hand behind the archive.
Building Architectural memory, one line at a time.
CONNECT
If there is a temple or wada, whose architectural memory you wish to preserve, I welcome enquiries for commissioned pen-and-ink works.
FEATURED WORK
Swarga Mandapa: The Cosmic Eye
COLLECTION: CELESTIAL SILENCE
Medium: Pen & Ink on Paper
Dimensions: 26.5 × 26.5 cm
Edition: Limited Edition of 25
Signed and Numbered
The Swarga Mandapa of the Kopeshwar Temple, MH, is a remarkable circular pavilion open to the sky. Its concentric rings of ornament, sculpted forms, and rhythmic geometry create a powerful visual experience that draws the eye inward toward the void.In this drawing, the mandapa is interpreted as a Cosmic Eye; a convergence of architecture, light, ornament, and celestial space. The circular void at its centre becomes both an opening to the sky and a symbolic point of contemplation, transforming a historic architectural element into a study of perception.Executed entirely by hand in pen and ink, the work explores the tension between precision and patience, translating stone carvings into line, shadow, and texture.The drawing remains one of the artist's most cherished works and marks the inaugural piece of ARKA ARCHIVES.Duration: 3 Months
Drawing Time: ~ 240 HoursArtist's NoteThis drawing was developed over approximately three months of sustained work. Through thousands of individually rendered lines and marks, the process became an exercise in observation, patience, and immersion. What began as an architectural study gradually revealed itself as a celestial composition; a eye gazing upward noting centuries of stone craftsmanship.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
I am Ankita, an architect and Pen artist based in India, working under the name 'Jidnyasaa'.My relationship with pen and ink began in 2014. Drawn to the discipline of hand, I spent countless hours sketching architecture, eventually completing my architectural thesis portfolio entirely by hand; a month-long act of patience, observation, and devotion to the drawn line.Over time, my attention turned beyond contemporary practice and toward India's historic temples, wadas, forts, and step-wells. Their geometry, craftsmanship, and enduring presence continue to inspire my work. Through pen and ink, I study these structures and slowly translate stone into lines, allowing them to settle into memory.I often think of the anonymous craftsmen who carved these rhythms into stone centuries ago, never knowing that a girl would one day sit beneath those same ceilings, in quiet light, tracing their work back into ink. Drawing becomes my way of entering into that conversation across time.For me, drawing is an act of constant attention. The slow accumulation of lines allows me to linger with a structure, studying its rhythms and proportions, until they become etched in memory.There is something so honest about ink. Once a line is laid upon the paper, it cannot be erased. Every hesitation, every tremor, every moment of uncertainty remains visible. These trembles of my hand are what make the work human.Through ARKA ARCHIVES, I seek to preserve these encounters; distilling architecture into memory, and memory into ink.
CONNECT
For enquiries regarding original works, limited editions, publications, or commissioned drawings, please get in touch.
email: [email protected]