Before the Wedding

Three women in pink, ivory and blue lehengas, gathered in a soft interior with a mirror and gramophone. Original watercolour and mixed media on paper, signed, framed and ready to hang.

Three women share a room built from warm washes of ochre and grey, a framed mirror and an old gramophone placed to one side.

On the left, a woman stands with arms folded and head tilted, in a mustard blouse embroidered in gold and a flowing pink skirt that pools on the floor. At the centre, seated, a bride in ivory and rust, veil drawn forward, one hand raised thoughtfully to her chin, jewellery picked out in white at her wrists and hairline. On the right, a third woman sits with hands folded in her lap, in powder blue and gold with a matching dupatta drawn over her head, a necklace catching light at her throat.

None of them are performing for the viewer. Each is turned inward — arranging a thought, waiting a turn, watching the room rather than us. That quietness, rather than celebration, is what the painting is actually about: the pause before something begins.

Watercolour is left to bleed and pool at the edges of the room, so the architecture stays soft and atmospheric, while the fabric of the three lehengas is worked with a firmer, more opaque hand — the pink built up in layered strokes, the blue given real depth and texture, the ivory kept light and translucent to read as bridal.

A branch in ink crosses the upper left corner, the one hard line in an otherwise soft, layered painting.

It suits a living room, a bedroom, a hallway or a reception, and carries particular meaning as a gift tied to a wedding or an engagement.

Original watercolour and mixed media on paper, signed by the artist. Supplied mounted and framed under glass, with a certificate of authenticity. One of a kind — no reproductions of this work are sold.

Specifications:

• Subject: Three women in bridal attire
• Medium:  Watercolour on paper
• Genre: Figurative, romantic
• Type: Original, one of a kind
• Size: 16.6 x 11.7 in
• Orientation: Landscape/li>
• Framing:  Mounted, framed under glass
• Signed: Yes, by the artist
• Included: Certificate of authenticity