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Meghana Mitragotri had always dreamed of creating a floral art exhibit featuring her favorite local Tri-Valley artists. Now a reality, the collection highlights the beauty and complexity of delicate flowers.
Already open in the Harrington Gallery at the Firehouse Arts Center, “Flora in Focus” will run until March 9. The Pleasanton exhibit features around 80 works in various mediums by 10 local artists.
“Being a floral watercolor artist myself, I always wanted to organize a floral art show,” she said. “Throughout my art journey, there have been a lot of friends that I’ve met that have really inspired me. I thought, wouldn’t it be nice to gather a group of my friends that are excellent artists for a show like this?”
“Flora in Focus” debuted its first exhibit at the Livermore Public Library last August.
“That was our very first run ‘Focus’ show. Then this year, the Firehouse Arts Center got in touch with me and asked if we would like to do a show at the Harrington gallery. Now, here we are,” said Mitragotri.
“I’ve always been drawn to flowers,” said Mitragotri. “They always brighten up the area and inspire me. Whether it’s walking on trails, in a garden or in nurseries, I feel flowers just lift my mood. Flowers have always been my subject of interest for art.”
“They truly are nature’s gift; no matter what occasion it is, flowers just make everything feel better,” the artist added.
Mitragotri grew up in Southern India where she was surrounded by family members dedicated to science; however, her parents encouraged her to pursue artistic endeavors, fostering her love of art.
“I grew up in a scientific community. Back in India, focusing on academics was our number one priority at the time,” Mitragotri said. “I’m very fortunate to have parents that really encouraged my sister and I to go to classes like art, music and dance.”
During this time, Mitragotri tried many different types of art mediums. She quickly found that watercolor painting was her favorite.
“I’ve done acrylic, oil, color pencil — but I found that my love for watercolor was just unparalleled,” Mitragotri said. She pursued a career in education, although she continued to harbor a love of art through her adulthood.
While living in India with her husband and daughter, Mitragotri worked full time until they moved to the United States. The family settled in Livermore in 2021, and her art career began to take off.
“As soon as I came to the Tri-Valley, I heard about local art organizations like the Pleasanton Art League and Dublin Arts Collective. I immediately became a member of those organizations. I painted more and more and my public art journey started from then,” Mitragotri recalled.
After becoming a significant figure in the local art community, Mitragotri was encouraged to take on a larger leadership role with her organizations.
Mitragotri served as the president of the Pleasanton Art League for two years, 2022 and 2023. It has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of her life, she said, calling it a “labor of love”.
She reflected on how the pandemic affected the local art community, essentially bringing things to a standstill.
“During the pandemic everything really slowed down. With the help of the entire board, we really accelerated everything. We came up with new programs, and we’ve been together thriving as an organization,” Mitragotri said. “We focus on bringing in diverse cultures within our memberships. This has been a very fulfilling and rewarding experience of my life.”
“These organizations keep art relevant in our Tri-Valley community,” she added.
She hopes “Flora in Focus” will make an appearance at other venues.
The watercolor painter runs a business, Daintly Made, that she sells her art and crafts through. Daintly Made attends art and craft events around the Bay Area.
“There are two goals of the art show. One is to bring the community a floral-themed art show because flowers are a great gift to mankind, they can uplift any mood,” said Mitragotri. “The second goal is to honor these artists. They are some very talented people.”
A gallery reception for the exhibit will take place Feb. 3 at the Firehouse in downtown Pleasanton, with refreshments, raffles and real floral arrangements — each artist will donate one piece of art to the raffle event. To learn more about “Flora in Focus”, go to firehousearts.org/gallery.
