Ishan Senaka Hewage:

Brilliant water colour artist

The coastline is blessed with a long sandy beach and a rich deep blue sea near his home. The waters of the ocean hit the rocks and provide the music. The splendour of town life and its scenic aura became a powerful and a lasting influence which provided an artistic stimulus to his life. It is in the town of Mount Lavinia Senaka was born on August 13, 1965.

Since the study of heredity is not an exact science, every man is biologically just what one would have expected or what one would never have expected or, most often a confused mixture of both. The subject of this biographical sketch is an unusually pure specimen of the first of these classes.

He never inherited fortunes or skills from his ancestors but from an early stage learned and earned them by trial and error, following the works of great masters. Such a person is Ishan Senaka Hewage. He was educated at Athulathmudali Maha Vidyalaya Mount Lavinia.

While in school his art teacher encouraged him to improve his skills. He showed artistic inclinations from his childhood and expressed a desire to become an artist. His observant father apprentice him to the reputable picture story and water colour artist Kalabushana Susil Premaratne. True to the typical Sri Lankan tradition his guru lent his paternal hands to mould a budding artist. Senaka attained maturity under the guidance of his art teacher encouraged him to turn out brilliant water-colour paintings. 'The Galle Harbour', 'Bhikkhus back to temple,' and 'The Old Rusty Fence' are highly original in composition.

The more one sees of Senaka's water-colours the more one realises the artist's versatility. He has painted many aspects of life in the ancient cities of Sri Lanka, and has done a series of picture stories to various newspapers. He dipped his brush not only in water colours but also in oil and acrylic colours. His work has a wide variety of designs, landscapes, wildlife and birds. His picture story illustrated in the daily Lankadeepa named 'Bora Wathura' became very popular among readers. In recent times his works were exhibited by the 'Jathika Chitrakala Padanama at the National Art Gallery along with reputed artists in the island. It was a tremendous success. He said he intends to have a one man art exhibition of his recent paintings.