array of art on show. Some customers had already pounced on their pick.
There was a wide collection of paintings to choose from, spanning from modern art to traditional temple paintings and more novel wood burning art, pictures done from wood shavings and paintings done with house interiors in mind. Not stopping at paintings, even sculpture, post cards and other art objects were available for sale.
The artists had come from many parts of Sri Lanka, from a broad spectrum of fields.
There were professional artists engaged full time in art, employees of other areas dabbling in art as a supplementary income earner and undergraduates and graduates of the University of Visual Arts.
Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Ashok K. Kantha, the chief guest, was ushered in a procession of traditional dancers, raban players and stilt walkers and an elephant clad in a John Keells Social Responsbility Foundation apparel.
High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka Ashok K. Kantha said that Kala Pola is the most talked about event in Sri Lanka’s cultural calendar.
“George Keyt belongs to the region as whole,” he emphasised, adding that an initiative has been taken to organise a major exhibition of his work in India on the same day as Kala Pola.
He hoped that Kala Pola from 2011 would be a regional event for South Asia and would have the participation of artists from India as well and later artists from the region.
Artists say ...
* Mahesh Jayasekera – This is the first time I am taking part in Kala Pola with my modern art and traditional temple style paintings.
* Raju Ramlan – This is my tenth participation in Kala Pola. The event should be held several times a year. If the Government and the Tourism Ministry sponsors such an event, more tourists will come. GKF has lent a hand for unknown artists.
* Sanath Rajapaksha – I’ve come with my sculpture and art. I have been with Kala Pola throughout and think it is a very good opportunity for artists. If our creations are of a good standard, we get good customer connections.
* Kanathigoda – I have participated from the very first Kala Pola. Even in an exhibition, you cannot see such a wide variety of art as you see in Kala Pola. This is the most successful event of GKF. But customers seem to be less this year.
* Chandani Jayawardena – This is my third participation. This is a good chance for us artists to measure our true worth, in comparison with other artists. We directly get a honest feed back which we don’t get at an exhibition.
* Rasika Wickremasinghe – This is my fifth participation. Looks like sales are good this time. My art is for interiors.
* Deepal de Silva – Kala Pola is a good opportunity for young artists like us. I am a full time artist doing temple style paintings.
* Anoma Jayaratne – In Sri Lanka, opportunities for artists are minimal. In other countries, they have place even on roadside. Therefore, Kala Pola is good.
* Sahan Samaraweera – For budding artists, Kala Pola is a very good venue. This time there is a large number of artists participating.
* Susil Senanayake – This is a good venue for us to highlight our creations.
* Alfred Ratnayake – This time the organisers did not erect stall for us and we had to do it ourselves.
* Ashoka Mahawatte – I have participated from the first Kala Pola. Now we have more artists than customers. Supply is more than the demand and prices are decreasing. We, professional artistes, now have to compete with university students. If Kala Pola is held several times a year, the situation would be better.