Artist with diverse interests

Working on various art forms simultaneously without compromising on quality is not everybody's cup of tea. But that is the forte of Ms.Amita Sachdeva, a self-taught artist, who also runs an art school ``Earth-n-Heaven'' Delhi.

``I have been painting since childhood and the first medium I toyed with was water colours. Then I went on to do oil paintings. Later when I got married and had an opportunity to visit Kerala, I learnt Tanjore painting,'' says Ms.Amita who is holding an annual exhibition-cum-sale of art this weekend at her studio in New Rajinder Nagar.

Pointing out that the hidden talent buried in each and every individual can be brought out with some effort, Ms. Amita says her art classes are popular with housewives and with young girls alike. ``I enjoy teaching and that is what makes me run these classes,'' she says. While she started with art classes at Noida five years ago, she now teaches at Rajinder Nagar as well. ``Of course, I have been conducting art classes regularly from my college days.''

Murals, stained glass painting, tiffany, porcelain painting -- there is no medium that she has left unexplored. ``These days, I am doing porcelain painting which is a difficult medium indeed. All the materials are imported,'' Ms.Amita says. ``Art is an expensive hobby and without support, it cannot be sustained,'' she adds, giving credit to her husband, Rakesh for standing steadfastly by her.

Many of her students have taken to art as a wholetime profession and are earning their livelihood through their paintings.``The oldest student I have is an 87-year-old lady,'' says Ms.Amita, who takes classes in groups of 10-15. ``This enables me to give individual attention to all students,'' she points out. ``I have to relate to every student in a different manner and that is why I conduct classes in small groups''.

During summer holidays, Ms.Amita conducts art and craft classes for kids ranging from three to 15 years. She also conducts gift wrapping courses from time to time. ``I also work on unusual mixed media like combining Tanjore painting and stained glass or even oil and Tanjore painting. Such combination art is actually a marriage of art and craft,'' she says. ``The bottomline is that I am satisfied with what I do.''

By K. Kannan

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