Uncover: An art exhibition by the Shyamala School of Art

By Shailendree 

Wickrama Adittiya

With no limitations in terms of technique, subject matter, and mediums, Uncover, an exhibition by the Shyamala School of Art, displayed a diverse and unique collection of work.

Shyamala School of Art Founder and Principal Shyamala Pinto Jayawardena

At Uncover, no two pieces of art looked even remotely similar, and visitors were drawn to each work for different reasons. The exhibition consisted of 200 pieces by 140 students, with the institute taking in students from age four onwards. Thus, Uncover had variety not only in terms of technique and mediums, but there was diversity to be seen among the artists too.

The exhibition was held on 17 December at Lionel Wendt Art Gallery, with a preview held the previous day. The exhibition was in many ways an uncovering of talent as well as a celebration of freedom, and as the Shyamala School of Art Founder and Principal Shyamala Pinto-Jayawardena said, “When children are given freedom, they blossom.”

Pinto-Jayawardena, who has wanted to teach art since her younger days, started with just two students, her daughters. Today, her granddaughter of 2 ½ years is also at the institute and was one of the artists whose work was displayed at the exhibition.

According to Pinto-Jayawardena, the diversity in terms of creativity and expression seen at Uncover was due to the fact that each child worked on a different lesson when creating their exhibits. Thus, the exhibition included works with mixed techniques and mediums, as well as clay work. Hanna Cassim’s work titled ‘Invation!’, for instance, took the canvas away from the wall and displayed a carefully curated Instagram feed on one side of the canvas and the user’s true emotional state on the other.

Speaking at the preview, Cassim, a 17-year-old student of the Shyamala School of Art, shared her memories of the institute, saying that one of the most valuable lessons she learnt from Pinto-Jayawardena was to, “Embrace mistakes and look at them in a different perspective.” Pawani Kaluarachchi, another student of the Shyamala School of Art, shared her experiences at the institute.

While the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery was packed with students, parents, and well-wishers, Mihiri Devendra, who was described by Pinto-Jayawardena as her sidekick, said, “I would call her an educator and not a teacher. She awakens the senses and talent of a student to their full potential, not by telling them what to do but by awakening their natural talent.”

Devendra added that the diversity seen in the room that day was a result of Pinto-Jayawardena’s ability to identify the goodness and creativity in every student and encourage it.

The Shyamala School of Art, located in Colombo 5, is a centre for Cambridge and Edexcel Ordinary Level and Advanced Level art and design. While very young students don’t get any formal instruction, the institute conducts artistic activities like pottery, collage-making, and wire and metal sculptures, as well as crafts on fabrics like tie dye and batik.

Pix by Sameera Wijesinghe