Hemathilaka Bandara : Everyday life adorns his paintings

In the province of Sabaragamuwa in the Kegalle district lay a beautiful village called Kolombuwa covered with rich fields and terrace beds of different widths, together with a mixture of wildness and loveliness which makes this panoramic view exceedingly impressive.

It is in this village that E.K. Hemathilaka Bandara was born on March 17, 1961. His father Kalabushana E.K. Ukkubanda is a reputed traditional dancer who excelled in Gokkola decoration and creative art. The art of Gokkola, create decorations that are ephemeral. The myriad of artists’ creations from the tender green palm fronds adorn festivals, weddings, religious ceremonies and even funerals. From childhood, Hemathilaka Bandara acquired his basic lessons in dancing, and creating works of art from his father.

His early education was at the Kolombuwa Junior School, and he completed his higher education at the Nape Sri Seelananda Pirivena. As a boy of 10, he used to visit the village temple ‘Buddhuge’ (Vinharaya). His eagle eye caught the beauty of wall paintings done by a reputed artist. Very soon Hemathilaka became a friend of the artist and assisted him in mixing colours, cleaning the brushes and learnt the rudiments of drawing and painting. By this time Hemathilaka’s interest in pirivena education receded and at the age of 16 he turned out to be a full fledged artist on temple drawings.

Hemathilaka Bandara

One of his paintings

To further his knowledge he came to Colombo in 1980 and studied art and sculpture under the tutelage of D.M. Seneviratne. He then followed a four year course in Art and Sculpture under Kalapathi Sunil Lakshman conducted by the Ceylon Society of Arts, Colombo. Hemathilaka gained knowledge under the guidance of reputed senior artists, such as Ariyawansa Weerakkodi, Joe Dambulugala, Dharmasiri Kariyawasam, to name a few. Hemathilaka turned his painting to oil on canvas, Acrylic and experimented with local paints on cloth. His experiments were mostly successful, and the pigments have retained their life like freshness to the present day. The subjects he selected for painting were realistic scenes of everyday life, street scenes, waterfalls, fishermen, bathing beauties and Bhikkhus in temples. The paintings ‘Mahindagamanaya’ and the ‘lake’ retained natural simplicity. The picture ‘lake’ consists of a series of slopes in a range of mountains in the distance, the tree with fore-shortened branches and a well-nigh perfect blending of composition, colour and technique.

There is nothing spectacular, about his landscapes, because the personality of the painter is quiet, reticent and serene. His work is deep rooted in his own culture. His close relations with state-heads and religious dignitaries has won him accolades of creative achievements. His work includes contributions to the Alawala Bodhirukkarama Viharaya, Opalla Rajaha Maha Vihara Galagedara, Kandy, the Buddha statue at the Katunayake Airport, Buddhuge and wall paintings at Ranaviru Mawatha, Ganemulla. The lyrical quality of the sculptures is evident in his creations.

Hemathilaka’s wife Menike Navaratna has provided an artistic stimulus to him. He is a member of the Ceylon Society of Art holding many posts and at present is the Vice President of the society. In recognition of his contribution to art the Mind Development and Research Centre Kelaniya has awarded him the Kalavedhi Prasadini.