RAM SINGH URVET – GOND ARTIST of MADHYA PRADESH

Video clip of Ram Singh on Lilar Kothi | on Trees

When Ram Singh Urveti painted on canvas for the first time, his colours spilled and spread, and he had stood before it ashamed and confused. But Jangarh Shyam’s mother comforted him saying: “The way the colour has spread over the canvas, your work will spread all over the world.”

“Her blessings proved so true. Within six months, I received a mention in the Lalit Kala Academy’s 41st National Art Exhibition, Ram Singh recalls. This was in 1998. Since then he has received many honours, including the 2001 Kali Das Award in Ujjain, MP and the South Central Zone Cultural Centre Award for Tribal Art, 1998. His book, “The Night life of Trees, Tara Publishing, Chennai, a collaborative effort with Durga Bai and Bhajju Shyam, was honoured with the prestigious Bolognaragazzi Award from Italy. Ram Singh has also travelled all over India and abroad exhibiting his work at prestigious galleries.

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Ram Singh Urveti has been working in IGRMS for the past 17 years. He was taught his art by Jangarh Singh Shyam, an uncle of Ram Singh’s wife, Satrupa. When Ram Singh and Satrupa arrived in Bhopal in 1992, they lived with Jangarh Shyam for five years.

Ram Singh Urveti’s first love is trees which appear in many forms in almost every painting. In one of his paintings, a swamp deer’s horns grow up to be a tree. A folder on his trees has been published by the Adivasi Lok Kala Academy, Bhopal.

Ram Singh Urveti’s wife Satrupa Urveti started painting with some reluctantly. She was afraid she would spoil the paper. But she gradually gained confidence with encouragement from Jangarh Singh Shyam and her husband. Now, she is an artist in her own right. Her favourite motifs are animals, birds, and trees.

Their two children, Ranjita and Sushil Urveti have already started painting. Their motifs are drawn from nature and village life. Ranjita likes bright colours, while Sushil draws mostly in ink. Sushil, who is in standard VIII, wants to be a computer engineer and a painter.

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