- Anusha Gajaweera on his longstanding career and ongoing exhibition ‘Hammer and Nails’
By Venessa Anthony
Being recognised as an artist does not simply come about from splattering a few drops of paint on a canvas; it’s also about drawing from one’s experiences and journeys. Anusha Gajaweera has plenty of experience in various ways – he has a trail of paper qualifications, he is an art curator, and has presented at conferences.
Since 2009, he has been working as a university lecturer in visual art at some of Sri Lanka’s universities and art institutions. He has lectured at Sri Palee Campus, University of Colombo, Vibhavi Academy of Arts, Theertha Top Studio and is currently a visiting lecturer at University of Visual and Performing Arts, Colombo, Swami Vipulananda Institute of Aesthetic Studies in Eastern University, and the University of Moratuwa.
Using all the knowledge he has gained over the years, he was able to participate in many art exhibitions, summits, and residency programmes in Sri Lanka, India, Japan, New York, including the Colombo Art Biennale, the Jaipur Art Summit, “Setten” at the Sojo University, Japan, and Rah residency, Iran during the span of his career as an artist.
He is also experienced in curating several art exhibitions, and has organised many art workshops as well as been a juror of art competitions.
Despite his interest in drawing, Gajaweera has worked as an art director in several television and film productions. Impressively, he has presented in national and international research conferences. Violin Reflects the Impact: A Music Iconological Study Through the 19th and 20th Century Buddhist Temple Murals in Sri Lanka Under British Colonialism and Modernist Mural Paintings in Botale Gotabhaya Buddhist Temple are two of his publication topics.
With Gajaweera’s work, the general theme always centres on social, political, and institutional power in Sri Lanka, and the struggle in social strata. This one is no different and is particularly valid during these troubled times. Although Gajaweera began working on this collection way back in 2009, he drew inspiration from an image so haunting, it stuck with him since his childhood. The concept of hammer and nails is a representation of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) riots and all the horrific events that took place back then.
“I remember back then during these riots that university kids were brutally murdered by hammering nails into their skulls,” he reminisced, describing a picture that has scarred his subconscious and hasn’t gone away despite the years. He also told us that with this collection, he aims to depict the violence in the world, and even in Sri Lanka. It is also a way of sending a message to the public, reminding them of the horrors of ‘88, and drawing comparison to the similarities with the modern day.
He mentioned that, to him, the nail and hammer in question simply depict unnecessary violence, oftentimes stemming from a political place. “Even with the case of Jesus Christ, a crown of nails was placed on his head and he is shown bleeding in most depictions of him carrying the cross – that too, was because of a political issue that you’ll learn more about from the Bible,” he told us.
This exhibition will be the first that Gajaweera presents at Barefoot Gallery, and he hopes to host many more. The exhibition will be open for viewing from Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. until 5 July, and he invites everyone to come gain an understanding of the dreadful world we are heading towards.