Seevali Ilangasinghe's recent work

He was born on Thursday, 11 January 1945, in a remote village called Sivalipura, (which has no connection with his name) in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka. His father was Ranbanda Ilangasinghe and my mother was Dingiri Menike.

It was the beautiful village in which he was born, located in the very heart of a dense jungle, that inspired him to be a painter. His parents were farmers and in his childhood he saw all around him paddy fields, animals, the forest and, of course, ordinary and simple village folk and these were the subjects of the themes that he painted later in life.

He studied at the village school and then moved on to Kekirawa where some relatives lived. There, he attended several schools. In 1964, having completed his education at Kekirawa Central College, he moved to Colombo in the hope of developing his skills as a painter.

In Colombo, he met Sesha Pallihakkara, the renowned dancer, choreographer, theatre personality and film director and under his guidance Seevali started doing some artistic work for films.

Thereafter, he trained under Somabandhu Vidyapathi, a reputed artist working in theatre, specialising in make-up, sets and costumes. He devoted himself consistently to the task of improving his skill and, in 1971, was able to hold an exhibition at the Lionel Wendt Gallery.

He says he is grateful to Mr. Harry Peiris of the Sapumal Foundation who recognised his skill and gave him a lot of encouragement and assistance to continue developing his art. "He also assisted me, financially, to visit France. It is unfortunate that there are very few people of his calibre and sensitivity to encourage and assist artists," said Seevali.

"I believe my paintings present, to my viewers and critics, something different from the work of other artists and this has encouraged me a great deal, such that amidst tremendous difficulties, I was able to hold exhibitions in almost every art gallery in the country. In 1985 I held an exhibition in Paris and thereafter in Germany, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the U.S.A.," said the artist with content.

Although he have had offers giving him the opportunity to learn the art of painting at many reputed institutes, he instead choose to utilise his innate talent and skills and dedicate himself to his work. With undeterred courage and my own inner strength, I have become what I am today.

My paintings reflect Sri Lanka's rural life and scenes of ordinary daily living and are not separated but deeply interwoven. I do not only create works of art but also derive great aesthetic pleasure from them." concluded Seevali.

Seevali Ilangasinghe is presently showing his work at Paradise Road Galleries, Alfred House Road, Colombo 3.