New Delhi: It is truly said that books are man's best friends. For many it's a source of knowledge but for some it's an object of art. Creating artist books since January 2010, 30-year-old Aditi Babel from Udaipur is spreading awareness about this new form of art. Drawing inspiration from the art and unmasking it, Aditi has taken it to a new level.
A graduate of Fine Arts and Applied Arts, did Post-Graduation in visual communication from IIT-Bombay and was introduced to book making in IDC, IIT-Powai in 2006 and then she started making her own books. She went to Florence to formally study book making. "Ironically here, when book making was taught by Professor Ken Botenic, I could not attend college as I had fracture. It was my friend Anand who helped me learn it," she says.
She made her first books while she was in Florence in 2009 and nothing could stop her after that. "I liked book making and I also wanted to include all my skills." Her first set were on masks as she was fascinated by the masks found in Venice and it is exclusively for her.
Her journey as a professional book artist started with portraying Udaipur as she pictured the beauty of the place. Be it the city palace, the flora and fauna, her books are filled with colours and are representative of life. She will now showcase other parts of the country through her work.
Not only the books, but the painting, craft and fine detailing are done by hands using some specialized tools like bone folder, awl, needles and many more. "Depending on the concept of the book to be created, it may be take two days or may take four weeks," she says. The cost starts from Rs 1000 and can go in lakh. She was even commissioned to make a book inspired by 'Bhagvad Gita' and 'Ramayana' for actor Amitabh Bachchan on his 70th birthday.
Even while she's trying hard to create awareness about this new form of art, she says, "It is difficult to survive on book making." She is in contact with a lot of organisations to make the art popular. When asked about who are her audience, she says, "Those who want to have books and are open to the idea of seeing books in a different form."
Not only finance, but plagiarism is also another hurdle. She says, "People have copied my work but at least people are introduced to it."
After books, she has also started making wedding cards. She says these are very exclusive cards and cater to a selected few as most people prefer the basic card.
She also conducts three-day workshop and has taught at lot of design schools. She is now planning to open a gallery in her house.
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