PALA POTHUPITIYE      (b.1972   Sri Lanka)

Pothupitiye's upbringing was steeped in craft industry specific to Sri Lanka, such as jewelry crafting with gem stones, mask making, costume creating - and the techniques of these crafts are applied to his work, along with narratives provided by a deep understanding of vernacular culture.


Coming from a lineage of traditional ritual dance, dance costume and decoration figure significantly in the work. Pothupitiye strives to create a high art status for craft by incorporating various traditions into the conceptual framework of his presentations.


Jagath Weerasinghe, academic and founder of Theertha Collective, observes:


" .Pala's constructs become 'an original' on its own terms, while confronting the established attributes of being 'original' within the discourse of 'Art'.


(Pala places) his own identity within the equations of 'traditional = authentic' and 'modern = simulated/copies' where most contemporary art are valued or devalued or interrogated. Not denying his historical lineage to traditional dance, Pala embarks on a journey of blurring the clear boundaries that divides traditional from the modern."

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Education

2002		Bachelor of Fine Arts, Institute of Aesthetic Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
2006		Training program in Pakistan traditional jewelry designing, under Assistant Professor Masooma Syed, Beaconhouse National University, Lahore, Pakistan Study and training, Pakistan traditional metal work techniques and methods, craftvillages, Lahore, Pakistan Study and training, traditional Pakistan sewing techniques and methods with craft men, Lahore, Pakistan

Exhibitions

2008		ArtFul Resistance - Crisis and Creativity in Sri Lanka, Museum of Ethnology, 2009 Vienna, Austria.
2007		Arte Curioso, Theertha Red Dot Gallery, Sri Lanka Images of Globalization, National Art Gallery, Sri Lanka
2005		3rd Fukuoka Triannial, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan Contemporary Sri Lankan Art: Works by 10 Artists, Millesgarden Museum Gallery, Sweden Parallel Realities: Asian Art Now, Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery, UK
2004		Aham - Puram, Public Library, Jaffna, Sri Lanka Contemporary Sri Lankan Art, GTZ Office, Colombo, Sri Lanka
2003		Ancestral Dress, Fimomenal Space, Colombo, Sri Lanka Art for Peace Exhibition, Lionel Wendt Art Gallery, Colombo, Sri Lanka
2002		Made in IAS, Curated by Prof. Jagath Weerasinghe, Star Fort, Matara, Sri Lanka Made in IAS, Curated by Prof. Jagath Weerasinghe, 706 Gallery, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Awards

2003   Best artist of the Year, State Art Festival, Sri Lanka First Prize, Sculpture, State Art Festival, Sri Lanka

Significant Collections

Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan ; Museum of Ethnology, Vienna, Austria.
Numerous local and international private collections.