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Interview with Atamjeet Singh Bawa - Paper Artist

Posted By : Mukesh Dube    At 21-04-2014 20:57:51

Tags : Paper Artist    

Historically, artists become famous either for their unique style or the character they exude to the world of art. Atamjeet Singh Bawa is one of them, best known for creating mean machines. He has created more than 27 highly detailed models which include Space Shuttles, Aircrafts, Copters, Bikes and Ships. Before you assume him to be a scientist, let us tell you that Atamjeet created such models out of – you will never guess – paper! Just … Glue and Paper.

Here is an Excerpt from an Interview with Atamjeet Singh Bawa:

Tell us a little about your background?

I was born to be a ‘pilot’, destined to be a ‘Table Tennis Player’, happened to be a ‘Textile Chemist’, could have been a ‘Guitarist’, landed up being a ‘Software Programmer’ and I’m gifted to be a ‘Scale Paper Modeler’

What have been some favorite recent projects?

1. Very recently I created a 1:1 scaled Paper Model of a ‘Rocket Propelled Grenade launcher – RPG-7’. This was used in a recently launched creative movie by a very famous youth oriented Channel ‘TVF Qtiyapa’ called ‘The Making of a 200 Crore Film’. This is the first paper model that was used in a commercial project.

2. I recently made another Paper Model of an Iron Man Helmet that I wear during my exhibitions to attract crowd!



What does “being creative” mean to you?
According to me, being creative means asking the RIGHT questions and to explain anything and everything using layman examples. A person who agrees to “Simplicity is the ultimate Sophistication” and follows the same is creative.
 

What did you want to be when you grew up, and are you surprised where you ended up?
I wanted to be a Pilot, a Table Tennis Player, a Guitarist (refer my first answer) and what I am doing today as a hobby is my passion. Machines have always fascinated me more than anything in life and I am not surprised while I am being interviewed today for my passion and this is definitely not the end!
 

What is a source of inspiration that is not art/design related?
I have grown up being curious about things. I used to ask a lot of questions (mostly science related) to myself and that curiosity and passion to get those answers by doing simple experiments became an important characteristic of me. For e.g. my curiosity towards airplanes motivated me to learn more about them and eventually inspired me to create a paper model of an airplane. Similarly, my curiosity towards machines inspired me to create their replicas using paper. My curiosity is my inspiration!

If you could collaborate with anyone in this world, dead or alive, who would it be?
Good question! Michael Bay (Hollywood Director & Producer)           
 

What can we expect from your future works?
I am making a highly detailed Paper Model of ‘Yamaha VMax’ that I started creating in Oct 2010 and it would take another year or so to complete. This is a dream project and I am taking my own sweat time to complete this project.

Are you involved in any upcoming shows or events? Where and when?
I am going to be featured in ‘Top Gear India’ magazine’s May edition and expecting a 2 pager article & ‘FHM India’ magazine. I was also recently interviewed by ‘NDTV Prime’ TV channel and it would be telecast in the near future.

What tools do you use?
My cutting tools are actually a growing collection and something I have handpicked over the years. This includes X-ACTO cutters, ergonomically balanced scissors, heavy-duty blades, wooden dowels, cutting mats, engraving tools, clips and multi-pronged tweezers. When it comes to glue, I always prefer to use various grades of ‘desi’ Fevicol.

What are you most proud of?
I am proud of my parents. The fact that I could choose whatever I wanted to do in life, may it be Gymnastics, Roller Skating, Table Tennis, Paper Modeling etc., my parents have always supported my decision and stood by me all the times J

What's the best & worst thing about being an artist?

The best thing is that it gives me internal satisfaction of doing what I love to do! My art is my hobby and I love doing it all the time. The worst thing about being an artist is that people usually visualize me wearing kurta, carrying a jute bag, perm hair, thick glasses and things we think of about other artists. I don’t have a better answer to this question actually because there is not bad about being an artist (at least I haven’t come across any such aspect so far)

Have you always worked with paper, or have you used other mediums prior?

At the moment, I’m very comfortable with paper - it’s just the right raw stock for the kind of work I do. Especially when you consider shaping, detailing, color matching and surface graphics.

How do u feel being a ninth most famous artist of the year 2005 from more than 40k artists.
Oh! That was one of those days I’d never forget and one of my first major achievements related to paper modeling. I was on cloud nine when I saw my page in the top 10 at www.artwanted.com and I sent out more than 300 SMS to all my friends and contacts to share my joy with them!

Share you experience while working for TVF Qtiyapa.

I was contacted by Mr. RaghavSubbu (Assistant Director) on FB and he asked me if I could create a paper model of a Rocket Launcher. Within 15 min of that conversation it was clear to me that I HAD to do this at any cost. I had only 2 days to complete the model and ship it to Mumbai and I literally spent sleepless nights and completed the model on time and with utmost quality! I was aware that TVF was probably one of the biggest platforms where I could gain instantaneous visibility and could add their brand in my client portfolio J

The TVF team was very happy with my work and hence they shared an explicit ‘Thank You Atamjeet’ post on their FB page!
 

What do you wants to say about ‘The Rodinhoods”?
TRH is probably the best platform for people like me who are planning a startup (or have already started up something). It’s a very active community that is always there to share ideas, suggestions, brainstorming for anything and everything asked in the forum. And not to mention about the relevance and guidance we seek from the articles shared and written by Mr. Alok Kejriwal who is one of the most down to earth personalities I have ever met.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our viewers.
If you think I am doing a good job with my hobby and passion (paper modeling), please do share the word about me with your friends. I am going to continue doing what I do the best for machines have always fascinated me and they are going to be around for a long long time J. If you ask me if I have a dream model I would love to make a paper model of, it would be a highly detailed steam engine.

Thank you Atamjeet for sharing your experiences with us and all the very best for your future endeavors. 

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