GALLERY - The Mood Stock

The mood - An exhibition

The human mind will always remain fascinating to me. The way it shapes an individual’s behavior and eventually creates a personality, how effortless it looks for people to maintain different personas, and how it can create world changing ideas which have never been thought of before.

Visualizing and adding these thoughts into art, makes the process of painting ever so interesting, as it makes way for various interpretations. No matter what mood you’re in, your thoughts flow into your brush strokes which results in different forms, shapes and colors. This thought process was constantly on my mind, when I asked a bunch of Pre-school kids to draw themselves. The results were simply mesmerizing! In that moment, I realized, that I have never visualized humans in the form that these kids did.

At this point in time, I was guided by Himaya Jayathilake. Up to date, she’s been the artist to inspire me the most. With her help, I was able to develop my conceptualizing and painting skills. Together, we explored how a child’s imagination is very raw and untouched to that of an adult, due to the child’s minimal exposure to society. Adults have been molded to perceiving everything through an ordinary eye, which may lack originality and creativity. A child’s imagination remains carefree, wild and limitless. The purpose of their drawings isn’t to please people, but to express their emotions and imagination. The purpose is to satisfy their own desires.

A memo that most of us seem to forget these days!

By drawing inspiration from these children, I sometimes imagine textures and imprint them on figures to show how vibrant things can be, only if you give space to imagine things that way. I’ve also drawn inspiration from Picasso’s faces, which refined some of my painting, while Basquiat’s style kept me rooted in the wild and care-free side. In terms of my color palette, David Hockney and Barbara Sansoni have influenced it.

I hope that my art inspires everyone to be free with their creations and to go completely bonkers with your imagination!

SEE YOU LATER ALLIGATOR See you later alligator is a base drawing of an alligator face taken from a collaboration piece by Andy Warhol and Basquiat. The colors and patterns celebrates the vibrancy of imagination | Size- 120cm x 80cm (Available)

LIFE IN A SHELL Who says that being an introvert is no fun? Living in a shell can be as vibrant as possible if you make it that way. They say that happiness is in your hands and it’s up to you to make lemonade with the lemons life gives you. Hence, the fin being the hand, the artwork is as vibrant as it can get with the lemons its fin is holding | Size- 120cm x 80cm (Available)

PERSONALITY TEST The two faces rise from the same body depicting the fact that even though they have the same roots, they can turn out to be two completely different people. For instance, the face on the left is a snake. The hair drawn on her head are actual snake heads. But the other side, if you follow her hand, it leads to a bunch of clocks where the clock hands spells out ‘always’ with a dash and seven to say that ‘I am there for you 24/7’. Whereas, on the contrary the snake has numbers circled, cut and chopped to say that ‘I’m only there for opportunities’. The crown over the right figure has ‘F’ and a ship for friendship and the left figure has three fishes for selfish. The colors on his side are rough, dull and scaly to depict the nature of that person. Whereas the other person has a bright, vibrant and colorful background to depict his friendliness and easy going nature. Ultimately they are both within a beautiful colorful frame which is the fake friendly nature they portray themselves as to the world. But it’s only once you get to know them that you get to see their true colours. Treasure those gems in your life! The ladder that reaches the top represents the struggle of both people and a reminder that no matter what personalities you get tied up with, you just have to reach the top! | Size- 120cm x 120cm (Available)

THE THREE PEOPLE ‘Come as you are’ (left), ‘Issa vibe’ (middle) and ‘It’s fash-hun’ (right) is all about the pride! The three faces celebrates the LGBTIQ community and gender neutrality. With all three faces following almost the same face cut, it is a reminder that the LGBTIQ community is the same as the rest of the community. ‘It’s a vibe’ clearly depicts a woman. The flower on this artwork is shared with ‘It’s fash-hun’; this is to promote gender neutrality. While, ‘Come as you are’ is dedicated to welcoming all humans as equals.

AFTERNOON TEA PARTY Taken after a drawing Marc Ferrero painted for the launch of a Hublot watch, the colors and patterns were added in order to play with textures. The patterns on the skirts holds intricate designs while the colours used plays with various shades to bring out a sense of depth. These edited elements resonates with Sri Lanka’s rich culture in the textile industry and tropical living. | Size- 120cm x 80cm (Private collection in Colombo)

READ BETWEEN THE LINES. ONE. If you look closely at a book, there is way more than just one story that the book holds. The older the book is, the more stories it has to tell. The doodles, the coffee stains, the dried up tears, the folded, ripped or burnt edges all speak about various other stories that the book has gone through with it’s owner. Thus, the older the book, the longer the stories have become. This is metaphorically a diary resort of one’s life. The color scheme used depicts the age of the piece. TWO. Once, I got a couple of Montessori children to draw themselves for me. Their drawings turned out to be fascinating as it was full of raw energy and imagination. Then I got a couple of my friends to draw themselves for me. The result was, average sticker figure drawings. Comparing the two, it was easy to conclude that the older you get, the clearer it is that society has somehow moulded you into sticking to ‘norms’. Thus, putting one and two together, it’s pretty clear that no matter how long you’ve lived for, you have to remain true to yourself and your imagination in order to be unique! | Size- 180cm x 80cm (Private collection in Avissawella)

2/ The animal collection

A collection inspired by both animals at home, and in the wild!

(All sizes are 10*x10*)

*Sold

(All sizes are 6″x6″)

*Sold

3/ face phase

A phase of faces

(All sizes are 10*x10*)

*Sold

This collection of faces has been designed to Match your cushions! Mix and match them to create a unique piece of art!

(All sizes are 12*x12*)

*Sold

This collection of faces has been designed to Match your cushions! Mix and match them to create a unique piece of art!

(All sizes are 12*x12*)

*Sold

4/ Abstract

A combination of various textures, colours and thoughts

5/ Identities

A celebration of locks, curls, wavy, dead straight, messy and buns

(All sizes are 1*1 foot)

6/ The balloon dog ; an iteration of the famous sculpture by Jeff Koons

Koons have always stood by his work having no hidden meanings. Thus, this painting is a nod in his direction. While the dog symoolizes companionship to man, the vibrant colors symbolize the immeasurable joy they bring

(Size : 150*180cm)