Vaishnava Artist Debuts At First Friday

suchandra · March 14, 2008

Pahrump Valley Times

http://www.pahrumpvalleytimes.com/2008/Mar-12-Wed-2008/news/20276197.html

Mar. 12, 2008

Caruhasa (pronounced Chaw-roo-hasa) means "beautiful artist" in ancient Indian Sanskrit.

John Breathwaite has preferred his spiritual name and has been using it for his art and personally since he received it from his Hare Krishna guru 35 years ago.

Caruhasa showcased 20 of his paintings in The Epicenter, at 1114 S. Main St., last weekend for the monthly Las Vegas arts event 'First Friday.' It was his first official show in Las Vegas.

Caruhasa has lived in Pahrump for more than six years and has shown his art at the Pahrump Town Library and participated in several arts events and fairs.

He used to have a show on Channel 41 dedicated mostly to movie reviews, called the Desert 60's Show.

In his artwork, his favorite subject is Indian mythology. He loves the vivid colors and bright contrast. The pieces are the most difficult because of the detailing involved in the jewelry and costumes.

He loves India and considers his style realistic. Some of his more complicated Indian religious pieces are priced up to $60,000. They are his most expensive works because of the detailing involved.

Caruhasa was not always interested in Indian art, but as a child he liked to copy comic books. He was always interested in art.

When he got a little older he started copying the "Vargas Girls," classic Playboy nude pin-ups.

He began painting when he was 17. He illustrated posters for bands and painted psychedelic artwork.

When he went to India and joined Hare Krishna, he began to really develop his painting. He even illustrated the Hare Krishna books that were published at that time. He worked on temple murals in India and even painted one ceiling in a temple in Delhi.

Since that time, Caruhasa has been taking commissions and painting various subjects from religious works to natural landscapes like Hawaiian sunsets and waterfalls. He likes to paint pop culture icons like comic book heroes, movie stars, or UFOs.

He has done portraits and sketches at local art fairs in Pahrump, too.

The Epicenter in Las Vegas contacted Caruhasa through his MySpace account. He attributes the opportunity for exposure to both his MySpace layout and slide show and possibly the exposure from the show at the library in Pahrump.

The show was a great opportunity because thousands of people saw his work, possibly including scouts from other galleries among them. He hopes to contract commissions from the show and is glad to get more exposure for his art.