A Colorful Ballet

A vibrant palette, a salsa of hues, that’s what ‘Dance of Life’, is all about!
Tulika Banerji

Your very own art exhibition in school-sounds incredible? Well, Avantika Kochar, IBDP (International Baccalaureate Diploma Program) student of Amity Global School, Gurgaon made it possible through her art exhibition ‘Dance of Life’, as part of her final assessment. Brilliant reds, radiant fuchsias, lustrous greens, shimmering blues and even blacks and whites, find a happy co-existence in Avantika’s work.

For ‘Dance of Life’, she chose ballet as her focal theme, “Dancing is my passion and my theme focuses on different aspects of dance which are presented creatively such as emotion, drama, expression, movement, rhythm, choreography, struggle and glamour.” Avantika’s work is divided into three parts: Colour, which portrays emotions, glamour and the expressional quality of dance; Black that shows struggle and pain, and lastly, Design. Just as good choreography creates a magical effect in performing arts; in art, it is the design which appeals.

One can see subtle influences of French artist Henri Matisse and Spanish painter and sculptor Joan Miro’s style in Avantika’s work. For a novice, she’s painted exotic canvases using a variety of media: acrylics, pastels, inks, print media, tape sculpture, etc. Inspired by ‘La Bayadere’- the love story between dasi Nikiya and a soldier, Avantika has also designed and created two spectacular ballet costumes, “I’d love to play Nikiya some day!”

If you thought IBDP is for those who like it easy, think again. Informs Babita Singh, her mentor teacher, “With Avantika having to put up a minimum of 18 pieces of art in the exhibition and 30 research pages, it is quite a challenge.” Added to it are a wide variety of subjects she took up as Visual Arts HL (High Level), Hindi HL, Biology HL, Maths Studies SL, English SL and History HL. However, all the hard work has only helped mould Avantika’s personality, “I want to thank IB for introducing me to art. My goal is to let everyone know that whether it is art or dance, both involve creativity, passion and hard work!”

Amity Global School’s International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two year educational programme for students aged 16–19 that aims to provide an internationally accepted qualification for entry into higher education and is recognized by many universities worldwide. In order to participate in the IBDP, students must attend an IB school and complete assessments in six subjects and satisfy three core requirements: Extended essay (EE), Theory of knowledge (TOK), and Creativity, action, service (CAS).