Taking the Leap With Mansi

How Mansi discovered Artflute

Buying my first piece of art was not an overnight decision. It has been something I have been contemplating for quite a while now. Though I have always enjoyed art and been connected with it, I haven’t really done anything about it—maybe because I have always thought that art was unaffordable or that it was out of my reach. During a conversation with a friend of mine, she recommended Artflute. As I was going through it, I was pleasantly surprised to realize that there were numerous pieces of art that were well within my budget. That’s how I eventually decided to buy my first piece of art.

Mansi's engagement with Art

Nobody in my family is artistically inclined and they consider buying a piece of art the same as buying a table or a chair. However, I have a lot of friends who are deeply connected to the world of art and a friend whose father is an artist. When it came to buying art, all of them had only one piece of advice to give me and that is—you must love the artwork that you are going to buy. I had all these misconceptions about the criteria to choose the painting to buy. I wondered if I should consider whether it would appreciate in value and other things like that. As much as all of that is true while buying art as an investment, I knew that for me loving the painting was immensely important since I would be looking at it 24×7. And of course the budget was also a key factor. It was through engagement that my taste in art has evolved over time. I realised that the talent of an artist is not just about accuracy in terms of proportion or replicating reality. Far from it, I realised my interest was in the thought that inspired the artist’s work. I find the perspective with which an artist views an object very interesting. Once I came to this conclusion, I enjoy engaging with the works of a lot of artists. Just browsing and viewing art and finding styles and aesthetics that I liked. I began going to art exhibitions and when I travelled abroad would browse in art galleries. The story behind the artwork is what fascinates me. What goes on in an artist’s head?

How Mansi picked up her first piece

I had already decided on another artwork by Anupam Pal and showed it to an artist friend of mine. As we were going through his works, both of us laid our eyes on The Window of Love at the same time and felt it was intriguing. That’s how I decided on the artwork at the last minute and bought it. It was so exciting to receive the artwork and have it hang on my wall. Since I am not a woman who loves jewellery, I would rather spend that money on art. My husband still doesn’t understand this. Buying the first piece of art was almost like stepping across a lakshman rekha. Now I am far more confident with buying art and the experience changed how I evaluate art too. I know that at the end of the day, it is very personal and about your own aesthetics.