Objects of Desire

Objects of desire combines the works of Pala Pothupitiye (winner of the prestigious 2010 Sovereign Asian Art prize) and Aruna Vidana Avachchi together reassessing the traditionally accepted roles of men and women.  

The concepts of male and female, and the problems which arise from the two combining entities, are addressed in a manner which not only questions the ongoing validity of chauvinism within society, but also deals with the problem of pre-marital romantic relationships.

Objects of desire is a provocative body of work by these two artists represented by both painting and sculpture installations.

Pala’s ‘umbrella lovers’ explores the problem of modern day romance in a society which has not yet adapted its tolerance of pre-marital love.

The vivacious colours of the umbrellas against plainer backgrounds reflect the audacious nature of romance and the young lovers’ defiance of outdated conventions. Aruna’s work combines male and female sexuality in a very different way.  The main body of his work, so to speak, predominantly employs the male physique.  At first glance, this might be mistaken to suggest the dominance of the more powerful male role within society.  

On closer inspection, however, one realises that the colour and texture of the sculpted bodies combine to reveal an interlocking relationship between the concept of femininity and masculinity.  

Although the sculpted bodies themselves are male, the colours used and the materials applied to the work are not only inherently feminine but have actually been made by women.  

The message here is that the relationship between the two sexes is literally interwoven and, just like Aruna’s art, the two are incomplete without each other.

Both Pala and Aruna are entertaining the issue of male and female forces, like real men and women in Sri Lankan society, to hide the issue of sexuality behind umbrellas and to conceal objects of desire behind a mask of convention.