Aaradhya Sunder Wins 7th Arts Olympiad in Washington DC

Sunder received a Certificate of Exceptional Artistic Accomplishment at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., during the 7th World Children's Festival held at the National Mall. The certificate was signed by International Child Art Foundation Founder and Chairman Dr. Ashfaq M. Ishaq.

Her winning work, an acrylic on canvas titled 'The Artist-Athlete,' depicts a basketball hoop in red outline alongside figures holding a ball and a paintbrush. The piece uses a pale palette divided by a vertical gold line and horizontal bands. Sunder, who participates in multiple sports, said she did not want to show art and sport as separate.

Dr. Ishaq conducted an appraisal of the painting during the festival, interpreting the basketball as a symbol of movement, concentration, perseverance, and practice. He wrote that Sunder's emerging capacity to use art as a means of thought distinguishes her, and he recommended she continue exploring anatomy, proportion, and movement across media and athletic forms.

Following the festival, Sunder appeared on Good Morning Washington on WJLA/ABC7 to discuss her creative process. The Washington recognition adds to a series of global milestones, including previous selection by the Salon des Artistes Français for presentation at Art Capital at the Grand Palais in Paris, where Alain Bazard, president of the painting section, praised her technical maturity in her self-portrait 'The Girl Who Paints Her Soul.'

Sunder has created more than 200 works spanning painting, drawing, mixed media, and claymation. Her background includes schooling in Delhi and studio instruction in Singapore, with mentorship from Dipti Karki and Shalini Kapoor. Dr. Ishaq recommended her for curated youth exhibitions, museum education programs, and international mentorship.