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Pencil Ecstasy at Lionel Wendt:
Marvels of pencil at work
Ranga Chandrarathne
 The exhibition of paintings by De Saman Samarasinghe, is being held
at Lionel Wendt Art Gallery. This largely self-taught artist attempted
to portray contemporary reality through an elegant set of pencil
strokes.
He has drawn inspiration from nature-scapes, interiors of buildings
and animals in their natural habitat. De Saman has primarily used the
medium of pencil. Though pencil art is not popular medium in Sri Lanka,
it is one of the much sought after medium in developed countries.
 Portraying reality in pencil strokes is, however, not similar to
pictures. Particularly de Saman is drawn towards ancient buildings,
vintage cars, nature and animals. One of the attention-grabbing
paintings is the painting of the interior of a church. Here the painter
has re-created minutest details of the interior with tainted glasses of
the dome. He has not forgotten the effect created by sun light filtered
into the church.
A singular characteristic of his painting is that the artist had
completely taken over by the subject so much so that he portrayed it
with realistic outlook. Yet they are different from pictures taken. In
close examination one can observe the elegantly written prose in pencil
on the white sheet. This has been visible throughout his paintings
including those on nature and ancient bridge.
Nature has been a dominant source of inspiration for de Saman. His
painting on scenery is one which immensely described the sensitive
nature of the artist. Merging of sky with the mountain range is
recaptured in an apt manner. Here he has manipulated the effect of light
and shade to depict intricate details of the scene and the prevalent
lighting condition of the moment. Perhaps, it is here that artist is
different from a photographer. A photographer may not be able to capture
a scenic beauty without appropriate lighting conditions. However, the
artist has the ability to recreate it while registering the defining
moment in his mind and re-creating it with a brush or in this case with
a pencil. The task is more difficult when a scene is depicted in black
and white.
De Saman's exhibits show in no uncertain terms that the artist has
effectively overcome those inherent limitations in the medium of pencil
art. Though in black and white, the artist has able to infuse life into
them by sheer manipulation of visual properties like light and shade and
contrast.
 Among other things, the paintings vindicate artist's innate ability
to grasp subtle nuances of visual representation. The painting of the
crane in about-to-fly posture is one of the drawings on animals. Here
the centre of the frame is occupied by the crane. However, artist has
not forgotten to depict the branch of the tree on which the crane
perched and the vacant sky it looked into. This is also an instance
where the artist has exploited the effect of light and shade to its
maximum.
The painting of a huge three in a clearing, among other things,
depicts bio diversity of Sri Lanka. Here the artist has depicted details
such as protruding roots of the tree which occupies the centre of the
painting and shrubby over growth surrounded by it. On a close look, one
may recognises the hard work on the part of the artist who has not left
any details unattended. The time of the day is depicted by the
manipulation of light and shade.
The painting of the ancient wood bridge is one of the attractive
paintings. Here the artist has taken a side glance of the bridge
capturing the river and landscape below. Compared with ancient wood
bridge, the pre-fabricated bridge has its own glamour and perhaps,
represents a different era.
The wooden bridge is a living monument of indigenous technology while
the other represents engineering marvels of modern day. De Saman has
proved his metal as a perceptive artist who drew inspiration from
diverse sources for his creations. Though he portrays reality, his
personal touch and subtle style will remain as a signature of his
paintings. The exhibition offers gamut of new creations and also
introduces, in a big way, the pencil art as a medium. Perhaps, time is
ripe for budding artists to focus their attention on the medium of
pencil art as a creative avenue. |
