Sri Lanka's architectural splendours in paint.
by Himangi Jayasundere
by Himangi Jayasundere
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A scene from Justice Akbar Mawatha in Slave Island, a Dutch type house from the Galle Fort and the British colonial styled lawyers' offices in Kandy are some of Sri Lanka's architectural splendours on view at the Barefoot Gallery.
The scene appears real and life in them almost tangible through the impeccable capturing of light and shadow. |
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But perhaps what makes the accuracy of detail surprising is the fact that they have been painted by a British national holidaying in Sri Lanka.The artist, Robert Sedgley has combined his fascination with architecture with the effects of light and shadow to capture 'passages of time' from a 'street level.'
Sedgley first visited Sri Lanka five years ago. In [March 1998] his visit to Sri Lanka to meet a friend working here, led to a friendship with Sri Lankan artist S.H. Sarath, culminating in his first art exhibition in Sri Lanka [in 2000]. During his next visit in 2001, he held an exhibition at the Institute of Architecture, on invitation. This second exhibition led to a meeting with Barbara Sansoni of Barefoot, resulting in his latest exhibition which will have the largest number of paintings on exhibition so so far, numbering over 40.
Sedgley's paintings all done in watercolours contain photographic detail. Most of them have been done in the presence of the subject. He explains how he sat across from …[a] crumbling British Colonial-style building …. trying to capture it on canvas and having to constantly move in order to glimpse his subject between moving and stationary traffic.
The architectural mixture in Sri Lanka consisting of Dutch, British Colonial and variations of traditional Sri Lankan architecture has evoked inspiration in Sedgley who finds the combination fascinating. But it is not merely architecture that he is attempting to capture on canvas says Sedgley, who points out that his work is also a representation of a moment or moments. ''Light reflecting onto shadow and the absorption of light into shadow interests me,' he says.''Shadows are not consistent and continually change as I draw so what I capture is part of the transition of time,'' he says.
While religious sites such as the Temple of the Tooth and the Kataragama hindu temple in Kandy and railway stations are the subjects of some of his work, the hill country series is also an interesting part of his collection.
The essence of this series, based on a train journey to Nuwara Eliya, is movement and this is evident in the titles which range from 'Interrupted Journey', 'Through' and'There Was a Time'. 'I was struck by the different landscape' says Sedgley who adds that he didn't want the the series to be 'naturalistic' or 'detailed' but instead, carry an extra dimension to stimulate the mind. Sedgley who has also done some street painting in France and Uganda says that in Sri Lanka the light is soft. However in England the weather changes everyday making it difficult to capture the effect of light into his works.
Sedgley first visited Sri Lanka five years ago. In [March 1998] his visit to Sri Lanka to meet a friend working here, led to a friendship with Sri Lankan artist S.H. Sarath, culminating in his first art exhibition in Sri Lanka [in 2000]. During his next visit in 2001, he held an exhibition at the Institute of Architecture, on invitation. This second exhibition led to a meeting with Barbara Sansoni of Barefoot, resulting in his latest exhibition which will have the largest number of paintings on exhibition so so far, numbering over 40.
Sedgley's paintings all done in watercolours contain photographic detail. Most of them have been done in the presence of the subject. He explains how he sat across from …[a] crumbling British Colonial-style building …. trying to capture it on canvas and having to constantly move in order to glimpse his subject between moving and stationary traffic.
The architectural mixture in Sri Lanka consisting of Dutch, British Colonial and variations of traditional Sri Lankan architecture has evoked inspiration in Sedgley who finds the combination fascinating. But it is not merely architecture that he is attempting to capture on canvas says Sedgley, who points out that his work is also a representation of a moment or moments. ''Light reflecting onto shadow and the absorption of light into shadow interests me,' he says.''Shadows are not consistent and continually change as I draw so what I capture is part of the transition of time,'' he says.
While religious sites such as the Temple of the Tooth and the Kataragama hindu temple in Kandy and railway stations are the subjects of some of his work, the hill country series is also an interesting part of his collection.
The essence of this series, based on a train journey to Nuwara Eliya, is movement and this is evident in the titles which range from 'Interrupted Journey', 'Through' and'There Was a Time'. 'I was struck by the different landscape' says Sedgley who adds that he didn't want the the series to be 'naturalistic' or 'detailed' but instead, carry an extra dimension to stimulate the mind. Sedgley who has also done some street painting in France and Uganda says that in Sri Lanka the light is soft. However in England the weather changes everyday making it difficult to capture the effect of light into his works.