|
Exhibition of Paintings by Piyaratne Hewabatage:
The triumph of patience in art
[Review]
My first acquaintance with Piyaratne Hewabatage began in the mid 60s
when he was the first Editor (Designs) at the former Ceylon Tourist
Board, when Neville Weeraratne was the Tourist Board’s Editor of
Publications. It was an association of two persons committed to art,
with Neville being the more mature partner and Piyaratne the eager and
youthful learner, with an individuality in artistic expression. Together
they gave the right beginning for the creative expression of Sri Lanka,
which should be at the core of Tourism Promotion.
|
Temple in Wattegama |
In the seventies Piyaratne and I worked together in the Tourist Board
for nearly a decade, when he flourished in the creative expressions in
art, especially in the design of brochures, posters, diaries, as well as
contributing to the making of tourist films. He was a trailblazer in the
promotion of the country.
His commitment was to the highest standards, while exploring new
terrains in art; largely influenced by his rural background, enriched by
the work of the great artists of the world outside, and combined with a
deeper understanding of traditional forms of art and design.
What is presented in this major exhibition of Piyaratnes paintings
is a combination of his skills in landscape art that is taken to a new
dimension of creativity, the focus on detail in natures designs that
are around us that transcends the camera lens in every way. There is a
fascinating richness of view, with an uncanny attention to detail that
enhances the beauty of the subject.
It is an exhibition that is not confined to a single style or school
of art, but one with a range of expression that is captivating in
content giving new insights of form, depth and design to images that
would pass the eyes of even many discerning observers of nature, the
human form, the labours of life, architecture, solemnity of religion and
the vibrancy of ritual.
What makes this work all the richer, giving is the refreshing new
look at the possibilities of art, when done with the artistic
draughtsmanship that combines traditional styles and patterns, often
ignored in a rush to a modernity that lacks depth and content. Piyaratne
Hewabatage remains a homespun artist, with a rare feel for the earthy
richness of his surroundings, be they Buddhist monks and Dagabas, paddy
fields at harvest, or the gentle flow of the Kelani River. His feel for
a village scene at Aranayake where he grew up, extends to Horton Plains
and thePeradeniya Gardens.
Working with pen and ink, he has produced true masterpieces in the
Mangrove Tunnel at Madu Ganga, Mulkirigala, a Na Tree in its glory,
Galvihare, Arecanut Trees, the wonders of filigreed timber in a
centuries old Dutch Fort, Spreading the net at Negombo Lagoon, and
Buddhist monks at a river crossing, and many more such expressions of
keenly observed beauty, that brings a new serendipity to Sri Lankan art.
Of rare and special interest are his expressions of the various “Bali”
Forms, the deities and demons to whom people make offerings to evade the
unseen dangers of fate or gain blessings to overcome illness or
hardship. He has captured in still life, the “Bali” forms that are
at the core of traditional ritual, and are almost evanescent in their
form, with destruction once the rituals are over.
Overall, this exhibition is a tribute to patience - the patience of
observation, the patience of memory recall, and the extreme patience of
presenting such beauty and detail with pen and ink. It is an exhibition
that demonstrates the substantial fulfillment of the trail blazing in
art and design that he showed in tourism promotion more than four
decades ago, and justifies the recognition of his capabilities and
promise in art by the Royal Society of Arts, London in 1959, when a
school child. It is in fact the artistic triumph of patience.
Lucien R
|
