Kurutu: Yohan Medhanka
The word kurutu means scribbles in Sinhala. Scribbling is considered as a worthless chaotic form of art according to institutions and their teachings.
The medium I have used in this exhibition are pen and correction fluid, also known as Tipex. I was recreating my process of vandalizing the desks when I was a teenager in school. This was an important part of the beginning of my drawing skills. I would focus on a girl sitting in class, the study of the eye and so on.
I am recreating old temple paintings in these pictures as well as other traditional imagery and bringing this imagery into a contemporary sphere. Sri Lankan traditional painting focuses on line drawing (rekha) and thereafter the colours are introduced (warna). This line drawing is often fine, concentrated and simple. The transition to the contemporary means that the lines are no longer beautiful, fine or ordered. The lines and the subject matter transform as the social and psychological surrounding affect the expression of the contemporary.
My Sigiriya Apsaras are not embraced by culture. My intention was to bring chaos into a new order, thereafter they were drawn together in what I perceive as chaotic harmony.
Yohan Medhanka
May 2014
