Monumental Connect and Many Other Shades

A painting and photo exhibition connecting Sri Lanka and India

Aide et Action International is organising an exhibition titled “Monumental Connect and Many Other Shades of Connect”, with some of the works of a leading water-colour painter of Sri Lanka, Royden O. Gibbs and a photo-exhibition of a young Indian artist Anavi Singh at Lionel Wendt Art Gallery, Colombo 7 on May 28, 29 and 30 (Saturday, Sunday and Monday). The exhibition is open to everyone on all three days. The exhibition will be opening at 4 pm on 28th May 2016.

The work of Royden O Gibbs, executed during his two months long visit to India last year, mainly includes paintings of some of the Buddhist monuments (of Nagarjunkonda and Amarawati in the state of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana) and Asaf Jah dynasty monuments of Hyderabad with prominent Mughal architecture. He sees many similarities in these architectures with Sri Lankan Buddhist Temple architecture and has tried to highlight them through his paintings. The exhibition would include some of his paintings of Sri Lankan Temples and Rajamahaviharas as well.

On the other hand, Anavi Singh (an undergrad student at one of the prestigious Design Institutes in India), who has spent her significant time in Sri Lanka and photographed extensively, would be exhibiting some of her selected photos. In her photo exhibition, as an Indian, she presents her perceptions of various shades of Sri Lankan life and colours.

The exhibition highlights India as seen by a Sri Lankan and Sri Lanka as seen by an Indian.

The proceeds of sale would go towards vocational education and skills development of most underprivileged youth of Sri Lanka. Aide et Action also looks at this exhibition strategically important from the point of view of Sri Lanka-India people to people connect.

Aide et Action, with its headquarters in Geneva, is an International Development Agency working in 26 countries across the globe with a mission of Changing the World Through Education. The South Asia operations of Aide et Action are spread across India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan. Our work focuses on children, women and men facing multiple marginalization and we help children, youth and communities at large to seek solutions through quality education across their life cycle. In Sri Lanka, Aide et Action runs 12 vocational training and skills development centres, recognized by the Ministry of Skills Development and Vocational Training, Government of Sri Lanka.

This exhibition is part of Aide et Action’s effort to develop global citizenship education, where people develop interest in others’ culture, art forms,

languages and perspectives and start appreciating them.