By Gurbir Singh:
If Prime Minister, Jacinda Arden’s giant mural 20 metres above suburban Melbourne was difficult for her to get used to, a tiny portrait of hers on an almond might provide a more soothing experience.
Claiming to be the ‘world’s first’, 18-years-old Aman Singh Gulati of India has painted her beaming portrait on almond to coincide with the PM’s birthday today.
Speaking to NewsViews this morning over phone from his home in Lakhimpur Kheri, a small town near Lucknow (India) where his father has a small garment business, Aman said “I admire her (Jacinda Arden) for her helpful nature”, and this was his way of greeting her on her birthday.
“Do you think she (the PM) will come to know of my painting and acknowledge my art?,” the young Aman asked NewsViews humbly.
”I’ve tagged her on Twitter already, so maybe she will see,” he added.
Meanwhile, NewsViews learns that NZ PM’s office has acknowledged his greetings “…your kind wishes and gesture are appreciated very much.”
Though his work of Jacinda Arden does not have her high resemblance, she is not the only leader he has painted on almonds.
Few days back, he also painted the almond portrait of Johnson Boris, the newly-elected UK’s PM in anticipation of his victory.
On being asked why he chose almonds as his ‘canvas’ to paint, Aman said “I did a lot of research and realised no one has ever painted on almond before, so I wanted to be unique, though I’ve painted on canvas also and won awards.”
“Painting on almond has many challenges,” he added. “As almond itself is oily, using oil paints was very difficult, so I mixed kerosene oil in it, and had to use a horse’s hair as a brush due to almond’s tiny surface.”
Aman, who completed his schooling earlier this year from Adarsh senior secondary school, Delhi, has set his eyes on going overseas for higher education. Canada and New Zealand are among the nations he is considering, he said.
“But New Zealand has always fascinated me,” he told NewsViews. “Maybe I’ll have more opportunities to paint if I travel there someday.”
Teenage artist, Aman Singh Gulati also claims to have been recognised nationally and globally on several platforms for his artistic work , and last year was a recipient of Sikh Award’s People’s Choice Award in Kenya for his contribution to the field of art.
