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| Wednesday, 4 February 2004 |
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Colours of his world by Prasad Abu Bakr 'Blue, Green and Red' an exhibition of pictures by photographer Athula Sisirakumara Ranarajah will be held at the Lionel Wendt Gallery on February 14 and 15. Athula's flirtation with photographs actually began with a camera that belonged to someone else. He first enrolled as a member of the National Photographic Arts Society in 1984 under the persuasion of M.G. Jayasinghe, who was the president of the Photographic Society of Kurunegala and his own uncle, with whom he was staying in Gampaha after completing his advanced level examination.
This was the first positive step that Athula took towards this fascination which he was attracted to since a very young age. The society conducted a three year diploma course which was free of charge, by students of veteran photographer Wilson Hegoda. Even though Athula joined the course [which he had to abandon midway], he had no camera of his own which could have been an asset to any beginner of this art. As a student of Galgamuwa Maha Vidyalaya where he was put through the paces of his preliminary education Athula later joined Kingswood College in Kandy for his secondary and higher studies. Athula who showed a keen interest in his studies and sports activities in school did not even bother to enrol as a member of the photographic society that was already existing in college. So it was only after he completed school and while staying at his uncle's in Gampaha that the images of nature began to serenade young Athula's mind. During this time Athula found employment at Hayley's Colour Laboratories through the support of a mutual friend. He was compelled to abandon his course that he followed with the National Photographic Arts Society owing to the demands of his job. With a camera that was bought for him by his uncle Athula began to work as a freelance photographer specialising in weddings. Meanwhile he also entered a few amateur contests at the time and managed to receive prizes for his entries. As he left to work in a colour laboratory in the Maldives, Athula's journey towards his goal in his chosen field of work began to take a more positive turn. His participation in the Canon Asia-Pacific Photography Contest won him an award of a camera which was actually a long stride towards success for Athula.
On returning home Athula joined the Fujifilm Colour Laboratory under the flagship of Hayley's Ltd. As if to catch up with lost time Athula re-joined the National Photographic Arts Society with a firm commitment of completing the three year diploma course, which he had to abandon earlier. Athula is a council member of the Institute of Sri Lankan Photographers and a member of the Lionel Wendt Photographic Society. He is presently operating the Digital Exposure and Colour Lab which is a collaboration of Hayley's Ltd. The operational part is done in partnership with a few others. Speaking of his first ever one-man exhibition Athula said he preferred to name it `Blue, Green and Red' as these are the major colours we are surrounded by when we confront nature, the wide blue skies and the overpowering greenery that we see everywhere with hues of red that adds a sense of passion to the otherwise dull world that we see around us. There are 50 pictures included in this exhibition strongly touching on the subjects of nature and the wonders it consists of. The photographer has brought out a contrasting note between the concrete jungle we are surrounded by and the fresh surroundings of nature he has captured through his lens. "If we look around us we find that many people tend to hang pictures consisting picturesque views of foreign climes, some of them that are not even remotely connected to our daily environments", says Athula. He says people do have a liking to feel the natural surroundings around them. A touch of nature is what they are yearning for but it will be much nicer if they can decorate their walls with photographs that show the wonders of nature that our country has to offer which many of our photographers have successfully captured on many occasions in recent times. He also says he has not used any filtering methods to enhance the pictures that are due to be shown. He has made use of natural light and other naturally available resources in the process of producing these pictures and the pictures have been developed and processed using the manual printing technique. Athula's deep fascination for the magic that can be created by light and shade has contributed largely towards the successful outcome of his expression, proving the fact that amateurs who tend to use ultra modern methods and techniques can sum up to zero if the eye behind the lens fails to see the world with incomparable wit. **** Back **** |
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