‘Kitchen: Culinary Ethnology in Sri Lanka’ to be held from 4-7 August

Lanka Decorative Arts in collaboration with the Department of Fine Arts – Facultyof Arts, University of Peradeniya will hold an international conference titled ‘Kitchen: Culinary Ethnology in Sri Lanka’ from 4-7 August. The four-day international conference is sponsored by the American Centre and spans study tours, academic presentations, discussions, performances and culinary demonstrations and will take place in Kandy, Colombo and Galle. Proceedings in Colombo will be sponsored by Mount Lavinia Hotel. 

The kitchen – also known as kussiya, adupadi and kusini in Sri Lanka’s varied languages – is a site which embodies the country’s long history and illuminates its vibrant multi-ethnic heritage. The kitchen and the culinary activities surrounding it are crucial to personal, national and global narratives and will be explored in-depth across multiple academic disciplines. Presentations will revolve around kitchens around the island, rituals, colonial and indigenous influences, trade routes and global economies. 

Objects, materials and techniques associated with the kitchen and fast disappearing food traditions in areas of the island will also be discussed by local and international academics, to highlight the island’s colourful culinary heritage and its intertwined histories. 

The two keynote addresses will be given by Prof. Elizabeth Simpson (Professor on Ancient Art, Bard Graduate Centre for Studies in the Decorative Arts, New York) and Prof. Sudharshan Seneviratne (former head of the Archaeology Department, University of Peradeniya, former Director of the Central Cultural Fund and former Ambassador to India). 

The event will bring together academics and students from the universities of Colombo, Peradeniya, Moratuwa, Jaffna, Batticaloa and South Eastern University, Oluvil. 

Cookery demonstrations, food tours and visits to museums and heritage homes will be interspersed with scholarly explorations on culinary ethnology in order to provide an all-encompassing academic experience to the participants. 

The travelling conference will begin with a two day session in Kandy consisting of academic sessions, performances and a field visit to a walauva. This will be followed by a day’s proceedings in Colombo on 6 August, sponsored by the Mount Lavinia Hotel. Proceedings in Colombo will consist of morning academic sessionsfollowed by lunch and a cookery demonstration by renowned chef, Publis Silva – Director of Culinary Affairs at Mount Lavinia Hotel, and a conversation on Portuguese and Dutch-Burgher cuisine in Sri Lanka. The conference culminates in Galle with a study tour of Galle with visits to the Martin Wickremesinghe Folk Museum and a 200 year old heritage bakery, and demonstrations and lunch by the Galle Fort Muslim Ladies.

The Lanka Decorative Arts (LDA) is a non-profit association formed to promote the dissemination and advancement of knowledge on the decorative arts of Sri Lanka worldwide. It brings together various disciplines such as art and art history, history, social history, material culture, design and design history, archaeology, anthropology and architecture.  Previously since 2008, LDA has organised international conferences on different themes such as Ivory and the Elephant (2013), the interconnected World of Eurasia (2011), and has covered topics of decorative arts, textiles, furniture, and archaeology. The 2016 Conference Steering Committee consists of Prof. Asoka de Zoysa, Prof. K.D. Paranavitana, Dr. Malathi de Alwis, Kamini de Soysa and Dr. Ayesha Abdur-Rahman. LDA Board Members consist of Deshika Van Hagt, Ninel Fernando, Mike Anthonisz and Rashid Abdur-Rahman. Research and resource persons are Ramla Wahab-Salman and Srilal Perera. Together this committee is responsible for this conference on The Kitchens.

Sponsors for the 5th LDA international conference are the American Center and the Mount Lavinia Hotel.

For more information on the conference and details about tickets for proceedings in Colombo, please visit http://www.srilankadecorativearts.org/ or email [email protected].