• Artist Mayantha Perera on what draws him to classical media

Mayantha Perera’s work on the canvas is detailed and intricate, with many elements making the artwork whole. And yet, when it comes to describing himself, he keeps it simple, saying he is a classically-trained oil painter and art teacher. Despite this simple enough introduction, “It is often challenging to describe oneself,” he explained. Mayantha had a lot to share about his work, artistic journey, and the revolutionary nature of traditional or classical art forms.

Mayantha began painting at a young age, and said that he has been fortunate enough to pursue it as a profession for a significant amount of time. “Although I have worked in various creative industries such as journalism, advertising, and teaching, painting has always remained my top priority and unbeatable in terms of its professional appeal,” the artist shared.

Traditional media

Mayantha primarily works with traditional media such as oil paint, but said: “Despite being perceived as outdated or belonging to a bygone era, these mediums continue to offer a unique and innovative approach to art creation. For instance, the technique employed by Leonardo da Vinci to paint the Mona Lisa remains a mystery, presenting a vast space for exploration and experimentation.”

He added: “While being a traditional painter may seem archaic, in reality, it is quite revolutionary.”

Going into more detail about what piqued his interest in classical art, Mayantha shared that when he was a child, he had a book that narrated stories of the Bible with classical paintings from different eras and artists. “Even now, many of those paintings remain etched in my memory. I used to copy them in my drawing book, and this became my main inspiration.”

Later, he said, with the help of art education, he began appreciating the Baroque art movement, which is considered the first-ever international art movement in the world. Artists such as Caravaggio, Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt, and Velázquez had a profound impact on his painting style, influencing the way he arranges elements in his paintings and how he approaches painting itself.

When asked about his process when creating a work of art, Mayantha shared that since he has always admired the way classical masters worked, he always starts with a sketch. “It may sound boring, but it is a very result-oriented approach. What I believe makes a good painting is a piece that is well put together and easily pleasing to anyone’s eyes according to the depicted concept. Therefore, I still stick to that process.”

In terms of inspiration, the Baroque period remains a huge part of Mayantha’s paintings and technique, but when it comes to concepts, Mayantha works with subjects like women, complex emotions, and tiny details. “Most of my paintings may appear to belong to history or tell a historical story, but that is not true. Even in a historical manner, the majority of my paintings depict current society or emotions that I closely experience. It may sound a little awkward, but that is my basic research interest in painting.”

Mayantha added: “Painting Sri Lankan skin tones is always joyful, so I might stick with this Sri Lankanness for a while.” The artist explained that when he is in good health, he can sit in a chair and work in his studio for 5-6 hours. “Along with painting and sketching, I enjoy reading as many books as possible on the subject and writing about art.”

Responding to an inquiry on what he is currently working on, Mayantha said: “When someone asks about my paintings and other artistic works, it usually indicates a desire to see an exhibition or show. However, I personally don’t like the concept of exhibitions. So I can assure you that there will be no such events happening in the near future. Nonetheless, I am continuing to work on a few pieces and accepting commission work as usual.”

Embracing technology

It is almost expected for a traditional painter to scoff at the idea of new technologies, but Mayantha has a more positive outlook towards changes in the way we make art. When asked about the importance of experimenting with new media and methods, he said: “Technology has always been a blessing for artists. One only needs to imagine the way Renaissance artists used to paint, with dozens of students supporting the artist in the process of making colours and grinding pigments. However, with the advent of the industrial revolution, this process was simplified to the use of paint tubes.”

He explained that artists should always embrace technology, be it cameras, projectors, artificial intelligence (AI), or any other novel technology, and explore its potential while also understanding its limitations. “I firmly believe that art and painting have a unique characteristic of being an alpha module of creativity, and anything mentioned above as technology eventually becomes a tool for painting.”

Creating art during troubled times

While these are times of technological advancements that can expand creative possibilities, they are also troubled times, with a pandemic following an economic crisis. Mayantha shared that the past few years have been the worst time for art in centuries in Sri Lanka.

“I must say that 30 years of war did not affect art in the same way that the Easter attacks, pandemic, and financial crisis have. Even the people’s protests have caused great uncertainty, especially in the art business, as art is a niche market, not just in our country but worldwide. Thus, in recent years, art has experienced more downs than ups,” he said. However, Mayantha added that in some cases, there were silver linings. During the Covid-19 pandemic, for instance, the restrictions that limited movement created a breathing space for artists to keep working on their craft.

When asked about the people’s protests or “Aragalaya”, and how this influenced his work, Mayantha said that initially, he was neither a fan nor an admirer of the people’s protests, as he held the opinion that protesting was not an answer, but merely a symptom of a corrupt, uneducated, and selfish society. “The exiled president did not fall from the sky. The blind people of this country made him president with a majority of votes, despite knowing his history well,” Mayantha said.

“However, people’s protests worked in a novel way towards art in the Sri Lankan context,” the artist went on to say, explaining that it opened up a few art practices, particularly art forms like installations and performances, which are widely known as the common man’s art. “These art forms are centuries old but still new to Sri Lanka.”

“Since I prefer paintings and narrations through my paintings, I had no intention of doing anything else other than painting. At the same time, I had no joy in being a voice for people’s protests. I had no desire to make people’s protests my identity, like Picasso did with Guernica or Jagath Weerasinghe did with the July riots,” Mayantha explained.

He added, however, that in a few sensitive cases, he couldn’t stop himself from sketching and creating small paintings regarding people’s protests. “To me, they are just incidental documents rather than paintings.”