Tissa de Alwis: A fusion of past and present

Tissa De Alwis is inspired by historical events, books and movies. His sculptures explore the themes of war, politics and the way in which history repeats itself. He says, "I create an environment and an atmosphere and sculpting is a form of escapism for me. My work is focused towards myself. I'm picture programming myself. I have honed my juxtaposing skills and I have got very good at putting together pictures."

His sculptures consist of soldiers and military figures from both World War I and World War II. Tissa is disillusioned with the Machiavellian nature of modern politics and says that political leaders are mere puppets and actors at best. He says he likes to keep current politics at a distance. He defines his identity by saying, "My identity is as an Islander. That is what makes me unique."

Opium

Tissa further explains that the Opium wars made him think because there is a similarity between the Opium trade and the ammunition trade. Both involve huge amounts of money and corrupt politicians. The futility of war is incorporated in his work through his thematic concerns with military figures and equipment. He also says that he is concerned with the serious social and environmental issues caused by pollution and climate change.

He describes himself as a self taught artist because he did not attend art school. However, his mother played an important role by constantly encouraging him to do sculptures. Tissa says, "Mom thought that I have a gift for making movement. My figures have the fluidity of movement. That is a special skill. It comes naturally to me like playing the violin or guitar." His favourite medium is clay and wire. He likes clay because it is a friendly medium in which mistakes can be easily corrected unlike wood or stone.

Cabinets

Tissa, a past pupil of St. Aloysius College, Galle looked forward to the library period in school because the Jesuits had the best libraries in Sri Lanka. There were cabinets full of books, and images from childhood reading still pervades his work. He recalls that one of his teachers at St. Aloysius College, Rev. Fr. Deborah S.J. was so impressed with his work that he wanted to enrol him in an art school in Florence, Italy. He says, "My father was of two minds, but Mom said no. My life would have been totally different if I had gone to Italy.

Tissa worked for the Ceylon Ceramic Corporation 40 years ago as an instructor in ceramic clay and terracotta. He likes teaching and a few children attend his classes at the home studio. He also likes listening to music, especially the Beatles and Joni Mitchell.

Pix: Thushara Fernando