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| (Pictures by Thushara Fernando) |
Dear Artist, great magician of the light,
You make God’s sun to shine in heart and mind,
We see a tree: you see sweet Nature’s song,
Deep meaning in all things you make us find.
God bless you, dearest genius of the light!
For bringing endless joy into our soul
God grant you peace and joy and true delight
As sharing all with us is your one goal.”
A Tribute to the Artist by Rev. Fr. Anton Weerasinghe S.J.
The epigraph is from a collection of poetry titled A Tribute to the Artist written by the brilliant Jesuit poet-priest, Rev. Fr. Anton Weerasinghe S.J. In 2004.
Jayantha Silva is a brilliant self made artist. His latest exhibition “Expressions 13” held at the Lionel Wendt art gallery in May 2016 was an immense success. Immediately after the exhibition he received a fair amount of commissions for portraits. Before the exhibition he did all his paintings in acrylics and it was a time consuming exercise. He has begun using charcoal once again, and his new portraits are done in charcoal. He has also done a collection of charcoal drawings of landmark buildings of historical significance in Sri Lanka.
Jayantha has been very observant from childhood, and spent a lot of time studying the human form. His paintings are powerfully evocative because he brings out the emotions within his subjects, brilliantly. His paintings tell a poignant story and are marked by his attention to detail. Jayantha says, he likes to be as realistic as possible. The pictures have already been embedded in his mind, and it is as if he has a camera inside his head.
He finds inspiration in books, movies and music. He says, the ballet Swan Lake made a powerful impression on him, and that he has watched the movie four or five times, while a teenager. He also likes the movie Sound of Music and the music group Abba. Jayantha has perfected his technique by experimenting, and fortunately for him his experiments have been successful.
Jayantha has exhibited his paintings in Sydney and Gold Coast in Australia in October 2006.
He has participated in the “India International Trade Fair” in New Delhi in November 2006, which was sponsored by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board. He says, many students from the University of Visual and Performing Arts attend his exhibitions.
