Aruna Harish uses instant coffee to paint portraits and landscapes

The multifaceted artist and art teacher works with a wide variety of media

Aruna Makeri, who paints under the name Aruna Harish, says it is time to wake up and see the coffee on the wall. The self-taught artist’s works in coffee painting cover a wide range of themes, including portraits and landscapes. Recently, the versatile artist painted a family portrait as a gift for a house-warming.

A coffee lover, Aruna says she found coffee painting an amazing art. “I have been doing this since 2020. There has been a lot of interest in coffee painting. I do portraits of people, children, pets, and customised art using instant coffee.”

Coffee, she says, is a versatile medium to work with and lends itself to different works. “Using instant coffee, I paint on watercolour paper and ceramic plates. Working with three shades of coffee gives each painting depth and aesthetics.”

The shades of coffee colour are created using different quantities of water. Filter coffee is avoided as the sediments in the coffee might not give the desired finish to a painting.

A crafter and art teacher, Aruna has been teaching art for over 20 years. Part of several exhibitions in Kuwait, she used to conduct workshops in art, embroidery and crochet there.