Cultural DIARY

European Philaharmonie

concert cancelled Goethe-Institut has announced that the concerts by European Philaharmonie, scheduled for the July 18th and 19th at Mount Lavinia Hotel will not take place due to unforeseen circumstances.

On Tuesday the Goethe-Institut was informed on problems with the travel arrangements of the orchestra, which occurred unexpectedly and could unfortunately not be sorted out. The decision to finally drop back from the concert tour - despite the efforts of the organisers - was made by the management of European Philaharmonie.

Tickets, which have been purchased already, will be refunded at the respective ticket offices.

Semage heads old Sokians Art Circle

Prominent painter Kalasuri Jayasiri Semage has been appointed as the president of the newly-formed old Sokians Art Circle. It was launched by the past pupils of Dharmasoka College, Ambalangoda.

Kalasuri Semage was elected unanimously as he is an internationally renowned artist. Lanka Kala Sangamaya too has honoured him with a Doctorate in Arts.

He hails from Ambalangoda and studied at Dharmasoka college. He came under the influence of two prominent art teachers viz M.W.L. De Silva and Bernard Lokuge.

He was perhaps the first child artist who held solo exhibition of his paintings at the Colombo Art Gallery way back in 1957. Thereafter, he served as an artist for the Lankadeepa and Davasa newspapers. His line drawings appealed to the readers immensely.

Kalasuri Semage held his first international exhibition in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia in 1995 on an invitation by the Lanka Kala Sangamaya. The exhibition paved the way for him to do the murals at the Buddhist Vihara in Malaysia and Mangala Vihara in Singapore.

He held a series of solo exhibitions in Singapore, Thailand, Sweden, Switzerland, Finland and Oman. His paintings had the distinct Sri Lankan flavour with Liyavel and Hansa Puttuwa. Prof Chandima Wijebandara once commented that his paintings could identified even without his signature.

He was honoured with the Kalasuri Award by the late President Ranasinghe Premadasa. Thereafter, he was honoured with Kalakeerthi, Kalabhushana Kalapathi and Sunfor awards. He was also honoured by the Sarvodaya Movement and the Solius Mendis foundation.