Exhibition of unique creative work

By Risidra Mendis

The Red Dot Gallery, known as `the Gallery' for artists has opened its doors to five renowned artists to display their works for the season. The five artists, namely Anoli Perera, Pradeep Chandrasiri, Anura Krishantha, Rohan Amerasinghe and Sanath Kalubadana are presently displaying their unique and creative works at the Red Dot Gallery. ˜

The Red Dot Gallery was opened by the Theertha International Artists Collective with the intention of supporting innovative and progressive art by the younger generation of artists and presenting contemporary art as part of our cultural heritage.

Theertha Curator Jagath Weerasinghe shared his views on the works of the five artists with The Sunday Leader.

"In the contemporary art scene in Sri Lanka it is Anoli who has contributed most for the past 12 years to formulate the idea of a 'woman artist' who is consciously engaged in the construction of an artistic personality and identity by ways of themes, materials, techniques and issues that are embedded in the discourse of 'the feminine,' 'the beautiful' and 'the family.'"

"The interventionist nature of Anoli's artistic personality first came into focus in her late 1990s series of paintings titled Aditi. Since then she has deployed her creative, critical energy to investigate issues pertaining to the roles expected to be played by women in a society that is neither modern nor traditional but largely para-modern. Her works present us with two distinct lines of inquiry into the 'being of woman.'

"On the one hand Anoli is questioning the position of the woman as a social being, within which she is expected to wear the burdensome marks of a culture depriving her of her identity as an individual. On the other hand she has been looking into the role of women as 'mother' or 'bride' or as the person who faces the brunt of the tension of conflicts inside the home - family domain.

"Her past works such as Dinner For Six and I Am The Queen have been mostly directed towards investigating the intriguing and coercive roles imposed upon women by the cultural discourse of family. In her recent works such as the sculptures titled Silent Grievers and the paintings Comfort Bodies, she has reinvestigated with a certain sense of poignancy the lives of women caught in the discourse of family."

"Chandrasiri came into prominence in the late 1990s. He belongs to the first generation of younger artists directly identified with the '90s trend. The theme of Chandrasiri's work has always been focused on violence and mainly political violence. The central motif of Chandrasiri's early paintings was a seemingly agonising male figure who presented himself as if he was engaged in a struggle to free himself from traumatic experiences. At his works displayed at the Red Dot Gallery bloody events of the 1980s are reminded not in an agonising manner but in a mournful and melancholic way."

"Krishantha has been working with a selected number of visual motifs such as chairs, tables, flowers and wreaths. Krishantha combines these two different sets of experiences together in a single work giving rise to a visual reality that oscillates between being trivial and serious. Tables and chairs in a way define Krishantha's artistic personality.

"He came to be seen as an artist steeped in a pop-kitsch tradition. Behind his preoccupation of chairs and tables there is a story, a very personal one laden with emotions as illustrated by the statement that accompanied the work he did at the Artlink 2000 workshop."

"Rohan Amerasinghe's work has always been about politics. He is a self taught artist and is a regular participant at the annual art exhibition organised by the Arts Council of Sri Lanka. But many a time his work has been rejected by the selection committee of this state sponsored show for its explicit and radical nature. He always has a story to tell. Which is more or less issue based. He has never been concerned with expressing a feeling or mood."

"Sanath Kalubadana's work has given rise to an important body of work that reflects the anxieties of a nation caught in a bloody war for over two decades. Kalubadana's work on the theme of 'soldier' has always looked at the soldier from a very intimate point of view. His works titled My Friend In The Corner Stand  in 2003 and The Lantern: Soldiers Come And Soldiers Go  in 2006 are excellent examples in this regard. His current work shown at the Theertha Red Dot Gallery consists of figures of soldiers in white which is a continuation of his works in this line."

The Theertha International Artists Collective has undertaken a considerable amount of art related activities since its inception in 2000. First initiated by 11 visual artists to facilitate international art exchange through the establishment of international artists' workshops in Sri Lanka it has expanded its activities to include art education through art teacher training, art and cultural publications, local workshops for artists, skills development through programmes such as computer and English language training, and international and local exhibitions.

The Theertha Pradarshana Wasanthaya 2007 will be held till December 28 at the Red Dot Gallery, Baddegana Road South, Pitakotte. The exhibition is sponsored by Sri Lanka Telecom.

Nemesis, versatile and persevering

By Megara Tegal

The Sri Lankan rock music scene is expanding rapidly as new bands emerge ever-so-often. However, only a few of these bands actually have the talent and the drive to go the distance and Nemesis is certainly not lacking in either.

The first time I heard Nemesis perform in concert was at an acoustic gig held at H2O. Personally I felt that the concert really kicked off once Nemesis took the stage. Performing covers such as Simple Man by Shine Down and Nothing Else Matters by Metallica, they certainly had the audience hooked.

Starting out in 2005, Nemesis had played at a few Rock Saturday concerts and made it into the 2006 Onstage Semi-finals. The band has gone through a drastic change in the line-up over the past two years and finally formed a winning four piece band with Mihindu as the lead vocalist, Mackie as the rhythm guitarist, Loshaarn as the bassist and Chatura as the drummer.

How did this mind-blowing band come together? Mackie, the only member from the original line-up, was determined to lift Nemesis off the ground and make it a well known metal band in the international arena. Ambition and perseverance being the ideal combination he has fended off disillusionment and is the backbone of the band.

The next addition to the band was the long-haired and wacky Loshaarn. Captivated by the distinctive sound of the bass guitar about two years back, Loshaarn had picked up the instrument and the rest is history. As for Chatura, it was quite simply destiny.

The final addition to the band was Mihindu. While he is the lead vocalist he was initially auditioned as a guitarist. Nemesis, at the time was in need of a vocalist and on arriving at the audition Mihindu was asked if he could sing, to which he had modestly replied that he could manage. Having studied Indian cultural music while in school, the soft spoken Mihindu certainly was not what you would call a 'metal head' back then, however, on singing an Audio Slave song, he was immediately recruited.

All the  members seem to have their individual styles and influences that give the band a unique edge. Their influences range from instrumental guitar and power metal to bands such as Marilyn Manson, Metallica, Shine Down, Nirvana and Black Sabbath. Being influenced by such a wide range of genres they refuse to identify themselves with a particular type of music. Instead, they firmly believe in performing covers of songs according to their predilections, which makes it difficult to place them in one particular category.

And to top it off, they happen to be a very versatile band. They are capable of performing covers by alternative rock bands to heavy metal bands, and are willing to tweak it depending on the type of concert. They are more inclined towards heavy metal but at the recent acoustic concert they were able to tune the music down to a level that was more apt for an acoustic gig.

The band is also quite dedicated to their music. They unanimously concurred that the band comes first without giving it so much as a second thought. Determined to make it big, their ultimate dream is to play at Wembley. And who is to say they won't.  After all, talent, perseverance and adaptability, is the perfect blend for success.

Monsoon Rains & Icicle Drops

From a freezing Mongolian nomad's ger to a hedonistic party complete with igloo in a Nepalese jungle, Libby Southwell has been to some amazing places, but they are places she'd never have seen if tragedy hadn't struck. She was a young successful Sydney advertising executive when her beloved fiance died in a mountaineering accident. Several other friends died soon afterwards, and Libby was plunged into numbing grief so strong she fled everything she knew.

First she came to Sri Lanka where she became chef to a millionaire Brit. Then she headed off to trek in Nepal and Tibet, stayed with herdsmen in Mongolia, then went to France for a silent Buddhist retreat. Back in Sri Lanka and working in a luxury eco-resort she survived dengue fever only to be swept up in the devastating tsunami on December 26, 2004.

 Author profile

Libby Southwell is a Sydney-born former advertising executive, cordon bleu-trained chef who now runs SriLanka InStyle as well as continuing to raise funds for post-tsunami recovery through the charity AdoptSriLanka. Libby lives in Sri Lanka and has set up a charity to revitalise the country's fishing fleet. She is also director of the Galle Literary Festival. 

Her work with AdoptSriLanka has so far raised more than US$2.5 million to rebuild the lives of people devastated by the tsunami; this book's success will further that work.

Arts Round-up

The Miracle Of Christmas - Carol Service at PCAG

This year the People's Church,  Assembly of God invites the public to experience the Miracle Of Christmas - a carol service for the entire family. Miracle Of Christmas will be held today (23), at 6 p.m at the People's Church, Kirimandala Mawatha, Narahenpita. The service will appeal to the young and old alike, using song, mime, readings, short spoken-messages, live instrumental music, and the choir.

There will also be a children's choir presentation.

Book launch  

Dinesh Gunewardena's book Magic Bullet Niyaya Nava Dushtiyakin will be launched on January 4,  2008. The book will be launched at the Mahaweli Centre in the presence of many distinguished guests. Comments regarding the book have been expressed by prominent personalities Tudor Weerasinghe, Chandrasiri Rajapakse, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Srilal Lakthilake and Gamini Viyangoda.

An exhibition of paintings by famous artists was held at the National Art Gallery a few days ago. The exhibition was organised by the George Keyt Foundation. Artists who are members of the George Keyt Foundation displayed their paintings at the exhibition.

The prestigious award `Anthony Van Dyck 2007' for high approval to personalities in the contemporary world of art, science and culture has been awarded to Maestro Richard Solstjarna with the following motivation: "For high professional commitment showed during the year and for having contributed to the achievement of art and culture in the world." Richard Solstjarna has been a Premiere Portfolio Artist at absolutearts.com since 2004.

The award is organised by Italia in Arte in co-operation with the Department of Material Science at the University of Salento, the patronage of the Mediterranian Puglia Region, Presidency of the Region of Molise, Council Members of Culture, Entertainment and Sports of Lazio Region, city and commune of Lecce. Awards were also presented to artists from 13 other countries such as  Algeria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Israel Italy, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United States.

Indian Surrealism: Paintings of Contemporary Indian Artists

Aakriti Art Gallery in Kolkata, India  hosts Indian Surrealism: Paintings By The Contemporary Indian Artists, from December 20 until January 5, 2008 curated by Professor Sovon Som. Surrealism, unlike the art movement in Europe exists in Indian visual-arts contemplation from time immemorial.

Indian iconography presents a unique panorama of surrealistic images. Indian epics, legends, rituals and the wide variety of folk arts which thrive as a living tradition, showcase the range of imagination of the Indian mind. Aakriti Art Gallery promotes their artists with a Gallery Portfolio at absolutearts.com.  The term 'surrealism' is common currency now. It is taken for granted as a generative force that offers explorations into the possibilities in the visual range. The proposed exhibition intends to present surrealism as a human predicament in the Indian sensibility.