Artist Arpita Singh
Read the passage given below carefully.
1.The commonly known fact about artist Arpita Singh is that she is currently India’s highest selling artist. Thus she is at par with the great masters of Indian art, such as SH Raza, Francis Newton Souza, M F Husain, and the like. Her art can be easily recognizable because of their figurative quality. Her genius lies in being able to weave miniature figures of men and women, tiny forms of flags, or other objects into a canvas space, using vibrant colours such as bright red, vermilion, royal blue, sunny yellow, and bright pink. She uses colours to effortlessly create a themed story about the figures on the canvas. The many figures and forms on the painting seem to narrate a story to the viewer and as one looks closer at the work, the varied texture of the surface of the painting, combined with the minute forms and the play of colours on them one begins to see a composition of unusual quality. Thus Arpita Singh’s paintings are not works that are at once eye-catching. They demand that the viewer stand beside them for some time and let the many images on the surface of the painting begin to relate to one’s senses. A little while later, the inner meaning of the painting begins to surface and one can understand the genius of the painter.
2. As a person, Arpita Singh is much like her paintings. A soft-spoken person, she welcomes visitors into her studio with quiet grace. Even the fact that she is now a top name in Indian art has not changed her demeanour. She still talks about the time when she and her mother used to live in the Gole Market area of New Delhi and she had seen disturbing riots around the town during the time of the Partition. It was her teachers at school who spotted her unusual talent in art and had persuaded her mother to enrol her into art college. She began her studies at Delhi College of Art under tutors such as famed artist Sailoz Mukherjee. They had taught her the basics of fine art, instilling into her the need to be original and to express her inner thoughts through the forms she created on the canvas. Quite early in life, her works began to be noticed by reputable painters and collectors. One of her earliest successes followed a show by a famed Indian artist ‘Pith Mehta. Though she dismisses that singular recognition as though the entire gallery had been transformed into a corner shop selling paan, the truth is that the spark of genius in her artistry had blossomed.
3. Through her many works, Arpita Singh today has managed to embed her imagination on the happenings of the real world making each work become a canvas of immense possibilities. At one moment we are attracted by the exuberant spread of colours on them. At another, it is the pensive figures that catch our eye and make us curious about the thoughts that must be passing through the minds of these figures. In fact, there lies the genius of this artist who manages to imbue her works with a multitude of meanings.
(I) On the basis of your understanding of the passage answer the following questions with the help of the given options:
(a) The most commonly known fact about Arpita Singh is that she is———————
(i) a female artist
(ii) the highest selling female artist
(iii) the only artist from Delhi
(iv) a living masterpiece
(b) The figures and forms on her canvas ————————
(i) seem to narrate a story
(ii) are drawn from memory
(iii) appear like flies and insects
(iv) have no connection with each other
(II) Answer the following questions briefly.
(a) In what area does Arpita Singh’s genius lie?
(b) Why does the writer advise the viewer to look closer at her paintings?
(c) What effect does a close look at the paintings have on the onlooker?
(d) What has the artist managed to convey through her paintings?
(e) What do we know about her art education?
(f) What is regarded as the genius of this artist?
(III) Find words from the passage which mean the same as:
(a) diminutive (para 1)
(b) melancholy (para 3)
Ans. (I) (a) (ii) the highest selling female artist
(b) (i) seem to narrate a story
(II) (a) The artist’s genius lies in being able to weave miniature figures of men and women, tiny forms of flags, or other objects into a canvas.
(b) The writer advises the viewer to look closer at the paintings because a closer look makes one see the varied texture of the surface and composition of unique quality.
(c) As the onlooker looks closer, the inner meaning of the painting begins to surface and one can understand the genius of the painter.
(d) Through her paintings, the artist has managed to convey an image of the real world, imbued with several possibilities.
(e) Arpita Singh graduated from the Delhi College of Art. She learnt under the famed artist Sailoz Mukherjee, who besides teaching basics instilled in her the need to be original.
(f) The ability of this artist to imbue her works with a multitude of meanings is regarded as the artist’s genius.
(III) (a) miniature
(b) pensive
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