Solo exhibition by Reginald Aloysius at Hempel Galleries

Friday, 13 March 2015 00:23 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

‘Cultural Memorials’ by Reginald Aloysius will be held from 19 March-10 April, the first solo show in Sri Lanka at Hempel Galleries, 30/3 Barnes Place, Colombo 7. Reginald S. Aloysius is a British-born artist of Sri Lankan Tamil descent whose background has informed his work exploring themes of globalisation, emigration, and the destruction of tradition through development and modernisation. Through the exploration of the iconography of Sri Lankan and Southern Indian temples, Aloysius investigates the social agency inherent in any cultural choice. Detailed drawings of Indian Hindu tem

ples coupled with a delicate use of paint create an alluring relationship between drawing and painting. Etched into the surface of the wooden support, Aloysius produces a series of precise lines, representing airline flight paths. Commercial flight paths are, also migratory routes. The addition of scattered dried oil paint visually reference petals on temple floors and the metaphorically the scattering of diasporas. The ‘paintings’ are maps that pick out the routes of contemporary Tamil culture. They may also be seen as lines that threaten to turn the surety of national identity into the shifting, nomadic identity of transnational cultures. Through the exploration of the iconography of Sri Lankan and Southern Indian temples, Aloysius attempts to investigate the social agency inherent to any cultural choice. “The pieces oscillate between drawing and painting. Drawing is the moment, the present with reference to past histories and painting is the revisiting of the moment, together creating an anticipated future,” said Reginald Aloysius For more information: 0774282067 or www.hempelgalleries.com.