ARTIST PROFILE

Amritha Jalaja Devi is a visual artist originally from Mavelikara in Alappuzha, Kerala, currently based in the United Kingdom. Growing up as an only child in Kerala, her interest in drawing and painting began at a very young age. What started naturally as a way of observing the world quickly evolved into a lifelong commitment to study art professionally and build her life around it. She completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Painting at the historic Raja Ravi Varma College of Fine Arts in Mavelikara. Those formative years shaped her technical skills in drawing and painting while cultivating a deep fascination with figurative art and how ordinary human experiences become meaningful subjects on canvas. In 2022, she participated in the collaborative public mural project 'Varavazhikal' in Alappuzha, associated with the Kochi Biennale Foundation—an experience that broadened her understanding of how art interacts directly with public spaces and communities. Moving to Britain marked another major turning point in her practice. Adapting to a new country made themes of home, migration, belonging, and memory deeply personal, which naturally entered her work. Amritha completed her MA in Contemporary Arts Practice at De Montfort University in Leicester, connecting the quiet human moments she had been painting with her experience of cultural transition between Kerala and Britain. Recently, her painting 'Shared Silence' (2024) was selected by the British Council for the Study UK Creative Connections 2026 exhibition in New Delhi.