Painter, magician and eminent teacher

Gate Mudliyar Amarasekera:

by Tissa HEWAVITARANE

A picture, it is often said, is worth a million words. It captures the mood and event and a subject with such vividness as to explore and expose the trait of an artist.

As such the late Gate Mudaliyar Abraham Christopher, Gregory Suriaratchi Amarasekera undoubtly has become Sri Lanka's doyen of painters.

Mudaliyar Amarasekera was born on March 2, 1883 in Dodanduwa South of Sri Lanka. His father, the Rev. Abraham S. Amarasekera was an artist himself and reputed to have been the best in his day at Trinity College. He was also a wellknown Hebrew scholar and was responsible for the revised translation of the Prayer Book and the Bible into Sinhala. Gate Mudaliyar's mother had died when he was four years old. Mudaliyar Amarasekera's father Rev. Amarasekera wanted his son to follow the family tradition of joining the church. However, Mudaliyar Amarasekera's firm resolve was to become an artist.

While the family lived in Moratuwa for a short period young Amarasekera was admitted to the Prince of Wales College and later his parents moved to Colombo. Thereafter he was admitted to St. Thomas' College, Mutwal.

Inspiration

Gate Mudaliyar Amarasekera had enjoyed himself the good old days at St. Thomas' Mutwal under the banyan tree close to the sea and the harbour. And it was here he developed a love for nature. The lush greenery, the blue sky, the sun set, with their rich glowing colours and the surging tide, tempted however to take to painting.

During the days of Warden Buck at St. Thomas', Mutwal young Amarasekera proved his capabilities as a born artist. His school not only provided opportunities for his artistic abilities but encouraged his love for theatre and his considerable talent as a magician to blossom. His introduction to magic, his life-time hobby, came when Warden Stone requested him to perform a magic show in aid of the college building fund.

Another source of inspiration to the young artist was the Thomian theatre, famed for its presentation of Shakespeare plays. But his interest in magic first began from home with the vanishing trick performed by his ayah (maid servant). When he was about three or four years old he used to cry if he was not given what he wanted. His ayah used to hide whatever he wanted behind her back and say 'kakka took'. This vanishing trick interested him so much and whenever he wanted anything he cried and each time the ayah obliged with a 'kakka took'. Later when Mudaliyar was a teenager, she tried the same vanishing trick on him. Very often, she would make his father's brandy vanish and put the blame on him. But Mudaliyar in his own words says, "I took it like a man and I like man I blamed it on the women".

Earning a living

After leaving school in 1907 he worked for a brief spell at H. W. Cave & Co., next Survey General's Office as a draughtsman, at Max Friend and later he secured a place as a lecturer in fine arts at Ceylon Technical College, and while lecturing he visited St. Joseph's Ladies and later Visakha to teach art.

Leaving the country

It was a time when everybody feared the impending World War II. His friends warned its consequences but it was not his concern. He decided to go with his son Douglas Amarasekera. His son at that time considered a genius though different from father. He excelled in mathematics at the Ceylon University. He was a painter, pianist, violinist, organist, actor and scholar all rolled into one. Although he had intended to stay long in England, he returned to Sri Lanka after ten years. Those ten years in England kept himself and his son happy, packed with excitement and productive! Five of his ten years he spent entertaining troops of all nations with performance of magic. The other five years were devoted to painting portraits of eminent personalities in England. On his return to Sri Lanka, he achieved the title of Gate Mudaliyar in 1924.

Full of humour

There were so many anecdotes to talk about him. Once Mudaliyar was asked to judge a beauty contest at a carnival. His selection was a buxom young woman dressed in cloth and jacket, with her hair tied in a knot (konde). She was beautiful and was crowned the 'Queen' at the particular carnival. She was so beautiful, a real peach. In Sinhalese we would refer to her as a 'dosi kalla'.

After she was crowned the 'Queen', Mudaliyar had received many phone calls, in Mudaliyar's words one irate woman asked me what had that girl that mine hadn't? I told her I hadn't had the opportunity of examining her that far!

At one of his art exhibitions a visitor standing in front of a portrait done by him Mudaliyar had asked what he thought of the painting. The visitor had said he could not find anything wrong except that the lady was little fat. The Mudaliyar had replied 'Of course, that was not my fault'.

Success as a painter

Mudaliyar Amarasekeras first international success came to him in recognition of his valuable contribution as a member of the committee of the Ceylon Industrial Exhibition in 1923, his first one man exhibition of painting at Adelphi London, which was titled 'Paintings of Ceylon'.

An exhibition with his son Douglas in 1939. It was in 1924 the British Government paid a compliment to the Sri Lankan Art and conferred the title of Gate Mudaliya. The range, power and brilliance of his work will astonish even those who knew Amarasekera well through his oil paintings. His best oil paintings were unemployed, 'unwelcome visitors' and the 'Devil Dancer's Daughter'. His remarkable skills as an artist and his ability as a teacher to demonstrate the techniques of water colour and oil was excellent. Mudaliyar was a portrait painter of distinction. He had done many outstanding and eminent personalities of Sri Lanka as well and rabindranath Tagore and Mahatma Gandhi of India.

Gate Mudaliyar Amarasekera played a vital role in the Ceylon Society of Arts after winning his first prize for his exhibit 'The Kitten' in 1903.He was its first Hony. Secretary (1919-1923) Hon Vice-President (1926-1958) and President (1959-1968).Gate Mudaliyar A. C. G. S. Amarasekera will be remembered for many years as a brilliant academic painter and his enormous contribution to Sri Lankan Art.

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