Whatmore on a mission to give more to Sri Lanka
It’s a sunny Wednesday morning, just the way Dav Whatmore likes it. As we walk past the Galle Face Green towards his apartment, heads turn and people smile. ‘Kohomada?’ Whatmore greets a few khaki-clad policemen on the road and is met with the biggest, and perhaps only smile you’ll see from them for the day. [...]
The death of walking
Friedrich Nietzsche, in an essay titled ‘On Truth and Lie in an Extra-Moral Sense,’ reflects on the question ‘What then, is truth?’ He argues that what we call truth is an illusion created by language; this illusion has become obligatory after prolonged unquestioned use; to quote Nietzsche, truth is: ‘…coins which have lost their pictures [...]
Familiar sounds but different
The thing about big glamorous shows is that although the lights glitter and the music soars, there’s almost always something missing. It’s either that touch of graceful confidence, or the flash of faith in the performers’ eyes. But tonight, there is a chance for perfection. Toccata Musical Productions is probably the biggest group of touring [...]
The dead poet’s deader society
He was a funny enough sitcom actor to start off with. As a wacky alien from a weird culture, his 70-80s show with the long-forgotten Pam Dawber was a family favourite for then-TV-starved local audiences. The man grew up with the teens who, sure enough, got a laugh or a giggle from Mork & Mindy. [...]
Letters
The dream has soon turned into a nightmare I wrote a couple of months back, about the wonderful work that had been done, down the Millenium Drive, Malabe, by the Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapakse, where a ‘Walkers’ Path’ had been built with paved roads, side-walk benches, solar lights and outdoor gym. It was a dream [...]
Preserving our ancient world
For Dr. Martin Perschler, history buff extraordinaire, few things live up to the sheer thrill and possibility of a historical site in the making. It’s a Friday afternoon and he is in suit and tie, sipping tea at the heart of the commercial capital’s even more commercial hub Colpetty- but it only takes a few [...]
Appreciations
Johann ‘Tiny’ Reid His good and gentle ways will live on I first met Johann Reid on January 17, 1956 – the day we both started school at S. Thomas’ College Mount Lavinia. After the new boys were ushered into our classroom, our teacher Mrs Jacob called us by our surnames and assigned us [...]
1, 2, 3, 4: From antenatal labelling to safe delivery
The family is complete. It is not just father, mother and baby, but four tiny babies, all boys, in their nappies sporting different coloured fruit. The first quadruplet birth at the private Ninewells Hospital at Narahenpita was last Sunday, August 10, complementing the 10th anniversary celebrations of the hospital. The parents, Upuli Harshani Mallawaarachchi, 30, [...]
Bolder and more defiant, Iromie’s women stride her canvas
For Iromie Wijewardena, Sri Lanka’s celebrated woman artist, her forthcoming exhibition of paintings from August 22 to 24 at the Harold Peiris Gallery of the Lionel Wendt, is a celebration of women. A dedication to women who strive to eke out a living, Iromie, with firm strokes of her brush and a strong use of [...]
Sarachchandra’s “timeless” sentinels
There was once a place, named the Arts Centre Club. It was of the Lionel Wendt theatre, and on many an evening going late into the night, there the imagination was helped to run freely. As I remember from long ago, Professor of Physics, Osmund Jayaratne was like all of the others in the gathering [...]
Men and women who made their mark
I have had the privilege of seeing Maname with the original cast. It was, no doubt, a masterpiece. Prof. Sarachchandra was a genius in finding something unique from South India and making it one of our own. No doubt, to this day we have not found someone to replace Shyamon Jayasinghe, who originally played the [...]
Let this amazing artist’s work speak to you
“Things don’t inspire me to draw I’ll draw anything that is there It’s like the urge to eat or read I have the urge to draw.” “Art is a journey, it is an adventure And if it doesn’t end up as anything good As quite a few journeys don’t You just paint over it.” -Laki [...]
The quintessential Anne
Anne Ranasinghe is perhaps the best-known internationally of our writers of poetry and of prose. Even for those who are familiar with her work, this collection which brings together in a single volume her autobiographical writing, short stories and 32 Holocaust Poems, offers a rare insight into the quintessential Anne. I first met Anne as [...]
Kadirgamar scholars meet MASCOM Director
Winners of the Journalism Awards for Excellence-Young Reporter of the Year award who received the Kadirgamar Foundation journalism scholarship to follow a post graduate course in Journalism from the Manorama School of Communication (MASCOM) in India, met their Director, Prof. Thomas Oommen and Mrs. Sandra Oommen recently in Colombo. The Sri Lankan alumni of Manorama [...]
Ramya de Livera Perera stars in ‘Movie’ theme concert
Ramya de Livera Perera returns as a soloist in a Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka concert when she performs the Warsaw Concerto at the Music from the Movies Concert on September 7 at the Ladies’ College hall. This musical extravaganza will present a wide variety of legendary film scores, which will appeal to movie fans [...]
Photo exhibit marks death anniversary of Bishop Frank Marcus
“Collection 2014”, a photo exhibition by well known journalist Percy Fernando to mark the fifth death anniversary of Bishop Frank Marcus Fernando will be held at the Negombo Sudasuna Auditorium on August 24 and 25 from 9 a.m. The event will be declared open by Bishop Valence Mendis. The opening ceremony will take place on [...]
Creative gathering: Pecha Kucha Night Colombo
Pecha Kucha Night (PKN), now in over 700 cities, was devised in Tokyo in February 2003. Pecha Kucha Nights are informal and fun gatherings where creative people get together and share their ideas, works and thoughts in the Pecha Kucha 20×20 format – where theyshow 20 images, speaking for 20 seconds each. This non profit [...]
Visceral vs. virtual: Exploring the future of the book
“Are books really dead?” was author Ashok Ferrey’s question at the British Council’s recent evening talk- ‘Power of the Book’. Following the powerful presentation on the fast growing popularity of the e-book by Director of MD Gunasena Rajiv Gunasena, the question was already on many minds. The panel for the event comprised author, Sunethra Rajakaruna, [...]
Patchwork & Needlecraft Competition/Exhibition
Daisy Vittachi will hold the 22nd All Island Patchwork & Needlecraft Competition/Exhibition on August 23 and 24 at the J.R. Jayewardene Centre, Colombo 7. On display will be over 20 unique bedrooms and baby rooms, table decor, quilts, cushion covers, embroidery work and many other fascinating craft items. Attractive trophies and prizes will be awarded [...]
WNPS lecture: Conserving Sri Lanka’s freshwater fish
Prof. Devaka Weerakoon will deliver the monthly lecture of the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society (WNPS) on “Conserving Sri Lanka’s Native Freshwater Fish: A Far Greater Challenge than Meets the Eye” on Thursday, August 21 at 6.15 p.m. at the auditorium of the Department of Metereology, Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 7. Prof. Weerakoon graduated from the [...]
