Artistic commemoration of SL-Bangladeshi ties

• Nisansala Karunaratne’s exhibition ‘Serenity’ to be held on 17 and 18 September

By Venessa Anthony

Nisansala Karunaratne Rajapaksa is a renowned artist, creative director, and book designer. As an artist, she has always found inspiration in nature, culture, and the nuances of colour, which is reflected in her work. Nisansala has not yet enclosed herself to a specific stylistic method; she continues expanding with new expressions and explorations.

“Serenity” is an upcoming exhibition by Nisansala that comes out of a collaborative project to commemorate 50 years of Bangladesh-Sri Lanka bilateral ties.

The Morning Brunch reached out to Nisansala to learn more about the upcoming exhibition and the inspiration behind it. In conversation, she informed us that the Bangladesh High Commission has been collaborating with her and the Cancer Care Association for a long time. 

“We have accomplished several noteworthy activities that solidified our mutual friendship, contributing to the relationship between our two countries,” she stated, adding that she is honoured to be marking such an occasion. Nisansala has also previously collaborated with the Bangladesh High Commission in Colombo and produced spectacular Bangladeshi traditional saree motifs as greeting cards for fundraising for cancer patients in Sri Lanka.

Nisansala has also enhanced her creative talents in the US and is currently exploring cultural studies related to art. Armed with an education that spans Eastern and Western artistic conventions, her art has developed into a combination of modern techniques and Sri Lankan tradition.

To Nisansala, whose motto is “Art is life, life is an art”, the concept of art is a form of visual communication. To her, it is simply another language; like a writer uses pen and paper to jot down their thoughts, she noted that what she does as an artist is the same, except it is with a paintbrush or any other medium. “You can communicate visually as an artist. Visual communication is a very powerful language,” she highlighted.

“Serenity” is one such exhibition where she portrays the harmony between oil and watercolour paintings, to depict a story through visual communication. She described it to be a collection of soothing paintings reflecting blooming years of the innate calling of expression, adding that she came up with the concept to portray the “Serenity” exhibition in hopes of providing even a moment of comfort for minds at unrest.

Serenity by Nisansala is her seventh solo exhibition. Commenting on how far she has advanced in her career as an artist, she said that she is happy and humbled by the fact that people cherish art by beholding and collecting her paintings, of which she is humbly happy. However, when talking about what we can expect from her in the future, she said she wants to do something beyond that for her community through her creative vision. “That is why I attempt community service through art,” she explained.

Besides, her substantial contribution to healing hearts through art is a hallmark as she dedicates her talent to community service. Her previous solo exhibition “Aubo” was dedicated to the Chemotherapy Port Project for Paediatric Cancer Patients. In the past, she has conducted many art camps at the Cancer Care Hospice in Anuradhapura to bring tranquillity to the minds of patients and conducted monthly art therapy programmes for children afflicted with cancer.

Currently, her paintings can be found and seen in several collections in Sri Lanka and many other countries. Her never-ending search for exciting compositions has fuelled her imagination and those of her collectors. With the upcoming exhibition, Serenity by Nisansala, to be held on 17 and 18 September at the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery, Colombo 7, she hopes to add harmony and splendour to the Sri Lankan art world.