The genius of children:

The legacy of Cora Abraham

If we were to nominate the one person whose contribution to the art of Sri Lanka surpasses all others, it would be Cora Abraham.

Mrs. Abraham was a secondary school teacher and, as it was the practice of those days, taught a variety of subjects but the one that captivated her interest above all else was art.

She subscribed to the principle that the genius of children should be released from the confines of conservatism and be allowed to blossom freely, without prejudice.

This called for an attitude of mind that encouraged free expression; the freedom to experiment with colour and line, and with clay. Coming to terms with the visual and the tactile world which is the business of artists to explore, understand, communicate and celebrate.

In 1949, Mrs. Abraham started a small school in Bambalapitiya with two like-minded artists and teachers, Sita and Richard Gabriel, which soon came to be attributed to Melbourne though it was in a Colombo suburb. Just as soon the Melbourne Art Classes were to become an establishment of great achievement.

Together they nourished the latent talents of vast numbers of children, from the quite young until they were to become mature teenagers. These students then continued to indulge in the joys of painting or remained deeply engaged in what others were attempting to do.

A fine critical conscience was born from all this.

As they grew older, Mrs. Abraham provided them with other opportunities to practice their art; she started the Young Artists Group. Many of those original children are now established artists, architects and professionals in many fields.

Mrs. Abraham died at the age of 84 years in December 1979 and the school she began continues to work under a name that applauds her contribution to the art of Sri Lanka. The Cora Abraham Art Classes now functions at 26 Boteju Road, Colombo 5, pursuing the methods of teaching to which Mrs. Abraham had dedicated her entire life.