|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Wednesday, 10 March 2004 |
 |
|
 |
Artscope | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Letters Sports Obituaries
|
Chandana Ranaweera : Artist in search of identity by Gwen Heart Chandana Ranaweera is different; he stands apart from many of the local painters. To appreciate his art one must have an acute eye projected towards the inner concept of the artist... and be able to search his soul because his art comes from within his soul.
It is a soul search and inspired by the Buddhist doctrine, i.e. like for instance Fra Angelico (1395-1455), Florence and Andreas Mantinia (1431-1506) of Padua who were possessed by the marvels of Christian faith as found in their famous paintings. Both artists from Italy rose to be great painters.I wonder whether Ranaweera had ever been or seen the Magao Grottoes in China or even seen an exhibition of these Buddhist cave paintings. There is a stark resemblance in his art. The moment I saw Ranaweera's paintings I knew I had seen similar art elsewhere. The subtle colours and gentle brush strokes. Yes, they were from the cave paintings of China's famous Magao. Tapestry The dull colours are emphasised by line drawing in clusters of varying browns and blues.
Nothing brash and explosive and distinctly removed from contemporary art. I am sure of one thing; that Ranaweera will be a much sought-after artist if he were to take up to cave and temple tapestry or perhaps if he were to hold an exhibition in China. Then and then only would his rare talent surface. He would be co-opted in the art scene of their great nation. Rural youth But Ranaweera is a humble, soft spoken rural youth who does not have a mentor nor a sponsor to upgrade him. Here in Sri Lanka talent of this nature goes unsung and buried in the dust of time. It is a different story with the influential who are practically hero-worshipped by the mafia often ending up at international exhibitions. Of course as a Sri Lankan I am very proud of their achievements especially when I saw Senaka Senanayaka's painting hung at the UN and yet another at the Hamburgh Auditorium whose name I cannot recall. I have also read some glowing tributes accorded to him by Prof. Asley Halpe, R. S. Karunaratne, D. M. Gunaratne, Edwin Ariyadasa etc., but like the morning stars, they fade off into oblivion of the evening. Background Emerging from a strong rural and Buddhist background, Ranaweera is an art teacher by profession. Born in Kurunegala, he received his primary education at Alawwa Junior School and secondary education at Maliyadeva Vidyalaya and in 1987-88 followed a course in Art at the Ceylon Society of Arts from where he qualified as an art instructor and took to this profession at Alawwa Junior School. Linear poetry Recognised for his speciality in linear poetry and colour lining, he has had many exhibitions from 1992 onwards. Instinctively inspired towards idol figures of Gods and deities, he evokes swift and elegant lines in subtle colours and hues.
He is an impressionist of some sort but its clarity has not yet surfaced powerfully. It will take some time when Ranaweera will discover for himself where his speciality lie. It is something that he must keep constantly on the look out with each painting he finishes. He works on the traditional innovations with limited imagination if one were to take a closer look at his murals. He is way out of Ajantha caves or the Sigiriya frescoes and the more I look at his work, the closer I get to the Mogao cave paintings. Ranaweera must focus on his own individual identity where he will be noted for his signature.
As a kid I remember an artist called Motagedera and whose figures fascinated me and later on I realised how close they were to George Keyt. The signature of motagedera was so vivid that I still remember those figures as crystal clear. Bangladesh Ranaweera held three one-man exhibitions and about ten group exhibitions. He has also exhibited his paintings in Bangladesh in 1993, India in 1994 and in Japan also in 1994 at the International Book Illustrations. In Singapore, a permanent painting called Observing Sil is sited at the Wilton Garden Temple. He is getting ready to exhibit his latest collection in a couple of months. As a young man with fresh and compelling ideas revolving around the philosophy of the Buddha, Ranaweera is an inspirational artist in search of conquest. He is slow and steady and as his talent keeps surfacing with each exhibition, he must be helped out to reach the top. After all when one has to emerge from a rural backdrop such as from Alawwa, where is the scope? Until such time he is 'sponsored' Ranaweera will plod on with determination and grit against all odds. **** Back **** |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
