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"I begin my work by thinking in colour and then sort of evolving from there. I layer a lot. It’s a whole journey." - ANJUM SINGH

Anjum Singh inherited painting from both her parents - artists Arpita and Paramjit Singh - and pursued it like a vocation. "When I started out as a student at Santiniketan, I was heavily influenced by Amrita Sher-Gil. I was, therefore, drawn towards a lot of figurative motifs. My sheer feel for colour and... "I begin my work by thinking in colour and then sort of evolving from there. I layer a lot. It’s a whole journey." - ANJUM SINGH

Anjum Singh inherited painting from both her parents - artists Arpita and Paramjit Singh - and pursued it like a vocation. "When I started out as a student at Santiniketan, I was heavily influenced by Amrita Sher-Gil. I was, therefore, drawn towards a lot of figurative motifs. My sheer feel for colour and texture has led me to explore forms that don’t tell a story, but exist for the sake of existence. I am not certain about the future of the figurative element in my work, but I do know that I wish to paint the simplicity of space, with or without form."

Her initial training at Santiniketan ensured that she was formally well-equipped to paint. This foundation was further solidified at the College of Art in New Delhi, where she completed her Master’s degree in Fine Arts in 1991. Singh then went on to study painting and printmaking at the Corcoran School of Art, Washington DC from 1992 - 94. It was here that she became more open to experimentation and developed her own signature style.

Upon returning to India, Singh simplified the texture she had used in her works, transitioning to flat structures. In her work, it is the surface, the texture and the application of paint that are emphasised. The artist has also said that her style had been influenced by her mother’s, from whom she had imbibed ideas of form and structure.

Anjum Singh’s paintings are a manifestation of her fascination with bright colours such as red, orange, yellow and pink, which dominate her canvases, with an occasional stroke of gold or brown. So abiding was her fascination for colours that her palette was the first thing she decided on. She usually restricted herself to pure colours, and found that adding black or white detracted from the composition of the work. She stressed that, "It is very important to know your limitations. My problem is with colour. I am very comfortable using red and I know if something is not working, I can use red to make it work. I consciously restrict my palette sometimes, because that sense of adventure tends to fade away if you are overconfident."

Singh was a disciplined painter who painted every day until she decided that the work had acquired a finality. Not bound by any one interpretation, her forms and figures are diffused and can be seen at various levels. In several of her paintings, she used a brush along with a knife to create a layered effect for the desired texture.

Anjum Singh passed away on 17 November 2020 in New Delhi.

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