After a season of profound grief, London-based artist Payal Roywest found solace and purpose through art. From her early days painting quietly in Kuala Lumpur to her bold step into professional galleries, Payal’s journey is one of healing, self-discovery and embracing the beauty of the unknown. Her work, rich in emotion and inspired by the ever-changing sky and sea, invites viewers to pause, reflect and connect. Now, as she takes her place in the art world, Payal shares her story of resilience, intuition and the simple joys that guide her hand.
For London-based artist Payal Roywest, art was never just a pastime. It became a refuge, a quiet place to process emotions too complex for words. Following intense personal grief, Payal turned to the canvas as a creative outlet and a sanctuary for healing. What began as a private exploration of colour and emotion soon became a turning point in her life. Painting offered her a path forward, a way to transform sorrow into something vibrant, hopeful and alive.
Today, as she presents her work at Zari Gallery, Payal stands at the beginning of a new chapter. Once hesitant to call herself an artist, she embraces the title with pride. Her canvases, rich with texture and feeling, are not merely works of art but reflections of her journey. Each brushstroke speaks of resilience, searching for light after darkness, and embracing a path that, though uncertain, feels entirely her own.
From Kuala Lumpur to London, Finding Her Medium
Payal’s love of painting began during an 18-month stay in Kuala Lumpur, where her husband’s overseas posting meant she could not work. With time on her hands and the tropical heat keeping her indoors, she turned to painting to pass the time. “I started painting, and I have quite a few pieces I did in Kuala Lumpur, but I used to just paint for myself. All the paintings told my mind,” she recalls.
It was not until later, after returning to London and facing a season of loss, that Payal realised painting was more than a hobby. Within six months, she lost her parents and grandmother, leaving her emotionally adrift. In that space of grief, she decided to stop waiting and embrace fully what had always been within her. Her painting Beginnings would become the first piece she submitted to galleries, and its immediate acceptance marked the moment she stepped into the art world.
‘Beginnings’, A Journey from Grief to Light
Beginnings was more than a painting. It was, as she describes, “a journey for me” and a cathartic process that helped her navigate one of the darkest periods of her life. Created in the aftermath of her profound losses, the canvas became both a reflection of her grief and a visual declaration of hope. “I was grieving intensely. I couldn’t feel happy, and that big white part in the middle of the canvas, that’s happiness. That’s where I wanted to be,” she says.
Though born from sorrow, Beginnings radiate an unexpected joy. “Even though Beginnings is born from grief, it is a pleased painting because it’s all about moving forward, finding your goal in a way and moving towards it.” The painting has taken on a life of its own, earning Payal the Women’s Essence Award, a moment she describes as both humbling and affirming. “I’m proud of that painting. It has opened doors for me.”
Abstract Art, Speaking Without Words
Though she has explored various forms, abstract art remains closest to her heart. “I’m quite shy, more of an observer,” she reflects, “and I feel like abstract art is similar. It does not shout. It asks you to come closer, to figure out what it’s saying to you.” For Payal, abstraction allows her to explore emotion without form constraints, inviting viewers to bring their interpretations and feelings to each piece.
“I would like the viewer to form their connection with the painting,” she says. “I want the painting to speak to them like it does to me.”
Beyond the Abstract, Embracing New Challenges
Payal is not one to shy away from testing her boundaries. Her portrait of Marcus Smith significantly departed from her usual style, pushing her into unfamiliar territory. “It was completely different to anything I’ve done before,” she admits. “I’d never done any portrait. I’m a self-taught artist, so doing a portrait of his face, especially his hands, took hours.”
The process was painstaking and slow, but it became an exercise in patience and trust. The result was not just a portrait, but a personal victory, affirming her ability to evolve and challenge herself.
Her recent work, Flow, returned her to the themes closest to her heart—emotion and movement. Inspired by the ever-changing flicker of flames, the painting captures the shifting intensity of feelings, their restlessness, their heat, and their unpredictability. “Being a fire sign, I’m quite drawn to fire, how it moves, the colours of it, constantly changing,” she says.
Inspired by Light, Guided by Emotion
For Payal, inspiration is rarely drawn from specific images, but rather from feelings, observations and the natural world. Her work’s recurring motifs are the sky, the sea, and the way light dances across their surfaces. “The sky is constantly changing,” she says. “And at night, the way the moonlight catches the clouds, it’s just amazing.”
Light speaks to her deeply in all its forms, and her next challenge is to explore translucency—how light passes through objects to create moments of softness and movement. “That’s my next challenge,” she smiles. “How do you put translucency on canvas? I need to meditate on that a little bit.”
Her latest painting, Sunset Rose, captures the reflection of a sunset upon the sea, its vivid oranges and pinks radiating warmth and optimism. Living close to the River Thames, Payal often visits the water for inspiration and as a space to observe people, nature and the world around her. “Nature is my big inspiration,” she says. “I think you can learn a lot from just observing.”
Trusting the Process, From Blocks to Breakthroughs
Payal’s creative process is as intuitive as her inspirations. She rarely begins with a plan, allowing emotion to lead the way. Yet, she acknowledges that every painting brings a point of frustration. “With most of my canvases, there’s always a block about two-thirds of the way through,” she says. “I used to worry about it, but now I’ve learnt to trust the process, to step back, walk away and come back to it with fresh eyes.”
Patience, she has discovered, is as much a part of her art as the brushstrokes themselves. She no longer rushes to finish a piece, allowing it to unfold in its own time. “I won’t give up on a canvas until I am happy with it,” she says with quiet certainty.
Her son, she adds, has become her unexpected in-house critic, often pointing out the exact spots she is unsure about. “He’s quite intuitive, and I often tell him, lend me your eyes,” she laughs. “None of my canvases would look exactly like they do without his input.”
Looking Forward, Residencies, Recognition and Remaining True
Now embracing her identity as an artist, Payal is turning her gaze towards the future. While the journey has been deeply personal, she is also mindful of the practical challenges that come with pursuing art as a profession. “My biggest challenge is to find buyers,” she admits candidly. “I’m one little person in one small place, and hundreds of artists out there. I need to find the right person to connect with it.”
Despite these hurdles, she remains optimistic. She is keen to build on her growing portfolio of exhibitions and dreams of staging her first solo show. “I would love to have a solo exhibition,” she says with a smile. “And I want to do an artist residency. Living in a big house with many other artists, I think you’d learn so much.”
Yet, balancing these ambitions with family life remains essential. With her son preparing for exams, she is mindful of timing and hopes to explore residencies during the holidays. “It’s very much the start of my journey,” she reflects. “But it’s exciting. I’m doing what I love, which is the right path.”
Three Wishes, Art, Joy, and Dance
Payal’s hopes are as heartfelt as her art if given three wishes. “I would wish for happiness,” she says. “Because I think you produce good art when you are a happy person.” Her second wish is to create work that resonates with people and leaves a lasting impression. “I would like people to connect with the art and go, ‘Oh yes, I remember that artist.’ I want to be known so that people recognise my art.”
Her final wish is to return to another passion—dance. “I do a lot of dancing,” she says, “and it gives me so much happiness. But I injured my foot months ago and haven’t been able to dance for a long time. I would love to be able to go back to dancing.”
For Payal, life is about balance. Good art, good friends, family, and the simple joys of dancing fill her heart. This spirit of quiet optimism and openness shines through her work. With every brushstroke, she continues to paint her way forward, embracing both the journey and the unknown paths still to come.