We live our lives in two places, in our bodies and in our minds. During the covid lockdown, Zarwan found himself stuck, struggling to keep hurtful negative emotions at bay. Self-sabotaging habits and destructive thought patterns were wrecking havoc in his entire being. He had no tools or material to keep occupied with either so Zarwan started spiraling downward into what he describes to be a wormhole in his mind space. His mental health was way out of whack and the only person who could pull him out of this suffering was Zarwan himself.
He looked around and found some wire, a few scraps, and just like that his creative expression took over his mind and body. His hands started working the wire to form Spiral, his first character in wire art. Spiral was his first step forward in self therapy and healing. Although Spiral initially sat by the gutter, he would soon be climbing the self-built walls of limiting beliefs that confined Zarwan’s progress.
Zarwan went on to creating other characters and named them Something Missing, Scatter Brain, Stoned Blue, The Bends, Hear Me, Twisted Switch, Inflictor and In Limbo, thus confronting his shadow self. Though most of the characters are dark and self explanatory, the one Zarwan identified with – Spiral, was truly symbolic of what he was going through.
Spiral symbolizes a connection to the higher mind and the energy of the cosmos. Spirals represent harmony, beginning, concentration and focus. Spirals expand, connect and develop. Lastly and most importantly, Spirals represent journey, direction and progress. The process of creative expression was so therapeutic; it brought out Zarwan’s inner world and inner experience and how it was affecting his outer perceptions, goals, relationships. Read more about the characters and check them out on Instagram @zbluntsandwelds
Zarwan is a magnificently talented human being with many interests and aspirations. He has dabbled in event management, sound engineering, fitness and physical training, permaculture and sustainability, production work for music bands and welding. ‘Anything Metal Works’ is a business venture he started a couple of years back. He has built many artworks and sculptures in metal, the most noteworthy being; trophies for India Bike week, installations for Harley Davidson, trophies for RedBull events, customized and personalized lamps and other statement pieces for interior decor. The most fascinating are the Kinetic sculptures! You can check them out on Instagram @zbluntsandwelds The wire art characters are also displayed here.
Zarwan’s wire art characters are his personal expressions of art and his next goal is for them to feature in a stop motion production. The vision seems far-fetched at the moment, but he dreams big and hopes to achieve them with the right collaborations. “I have learnt to separate art for money and art for me. Have always been a sucker for perfection but have realized that progress is much more important than perfection. If I am able to help anyone by sharing my story I would consider this to be a small but significant contribution”, he says. I wish Zarwan all the best and thank him for sharing this part of his life with us!
Setbacks are inevitable, be it our personal relationships or professional endeavours. It is how we deal with them and what we learn from them that decide if we are able to break the cycle of limited knowledge and negating mind scripts that trap us. Though many of us are blessed with friends and family who lend their steadfast support, it is one’s own self knowledge and a comprehension of one’s own dark side that ultimately pulls us out of the chaos we have invited into our lives unconsciously.
Hence to conclude, I would like to quote Carl Jung – “Loneliness does not come from having no people around you, but from being unable to communicate the things that seem important to you. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious. The brighter the light, the darker the shadow. Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate. To confront a person with his own shadow is to show him his own light.”
Connect with Zarwan Elavia
Email: zarwan@anythingmetalworks.in
Social: @zbluntsandwelds | www.facebook.com/zarwan.elavia