Revealing talent it was indeed
It was a good night for the students of the Academy of Design/Northumbria UK programme – with the REVEAL graduate design exhibition, they announced their coming of age. Young designers with an interest in graphics, fashion and interior design, the group brought to their final year projects audacious concepts, beautiful designs and striking presentations. Dominating the spaces at Park Street Mews, the exhibition drew in not just friends and family, but industry leaders and professionals headhunting exciting, new talent – and there was plenty to be found.
Elegant and innovative designs. Pix by Indika Handuwala
Inside the large hall, fashion graduates brought to their designs wildly differing interests and artistic inclinations. The work on display covered the spectrum from winter-wear to swimwear and the textiles and styles adopted were equally varied. From fabrics inspired by the natural world, African face paintings and the Chrysler Building to a merging of Chinese style with Scottish textiles, the young designers were clearly feeling adventurous. Walking around the room, visitors could stop and chat with the young designers themselves.
Ann Mendis whose collection of minimalistic sporty wear was inspired by the 1960s Olympics and the Space Age, saw her work as a fusion of fashion and technology. For Nayomi Siriwardena, who designed a line of swimwear inspired by vintage prints and that drew on a palette of colours you’d expect to find by a poolside in Miami, fashion was a way “to help people define and express their roles in the world.”
In Bhagya Gooneratne’s case, inspiration lay closer to home. Her final collection paid homage to old Ceylonese clothing of the colonial era and was complemented by an interest in handloom, batik, beeralu, as well as rush and reed. Speaking of the techniques he is intimate with as a design graduate, Harshana Samarathunga listed textile development and techniques such as embroidery, screen printing, handloom weaving, knitting, crochet, batik dip-dye and developing 2-D prints. He’s hoping for a job that will play to his strengths, perhaps something that incorporates fashion illustration, 3-D design, colour theory or textiles.
For many of these young designers, the ultimate goal is to have their brand. Sanjeewani Seneviratne thinks she knows what will set her apart: “I believe that our heritage has value which has not been fully recognised by the international market,” she writes in her artist’s note, going on to share her determination to help build such recognition for Sri Lanka abroad.
The group of graduates specialising in graphic design was much smaller than those dedicated to fashion or interior design, but they compensated by punching above their weight. The department has seen students such as Adhila Marzook shine. The 22-year-old became the first Sri Lankan to win the International Society of Typographic Designers recommendation. Another student, Natasha Fernando was selected to attend the Cannes Lions Roger Hatchuel programme in France in 2014.
One of the most interesting projects came from Pathum Egodawatte who decided to see how typography could be placed in the service of promoting racial harmony by designing letters that could be read by both Sinhalese and Tamil speakers. Serious research into the structures of both alphabets allowed him to identify similarities and fuse the two sets to create a ‘new hybrid alphabet’ legible to anyone who could read either Tamil or Sinhalese. The project received First-Class Honours in 2013 and went on to earn a standing ovation at the Typo-forum in India in 2014. Representatives of Google in the audience were so impressed that they then hired him as a freelancer to work with their font design team.
For many, graduating from the programme has meant a boost in their confidence and a clarification of their vision for themselves and their work. For Oshadhi Shamara Paranavitane “design is a way of thinking and an opportunity to tell a story.” For Avinash Thamal Liyanage, becoming a member of the creative industry has been a liberating and empowering experience.
As another graduate Ahamed Sharfy says, “Design has paved a path to a world with unparalleled possibilities and epic stories to tell.”At the head of the Interior Design Department, Joel Rapp is pleased to note that his 34 graduates are going out into the world at an exciting time. “Our burgeoning field is just starting to take its first steps and is being seen as a viable separate profession,” he says, noting that six new firms have been founded by alumni in the last three years. He knows that the ranks will only swell with this new batch.
Many like Babila Renuka Moorthy are anticipating an exciting and fulfilling career in the field: “I strive for brilliance of colour, form and material. Students each have their own key inspirations: Eliza Shivani Nithiaparen whose projects have included a hotel lobby that also served as a space for performance and a concert hall for the deaf, has found a way to connect her interests in music and interior spaces. For Goyumi Munasinghe, who grew up watching her father the architect Vipula Munasinghe at work, this seemed like the most natural choice. Buddhi Abeywardena decided to sign up after a stint as the Craft Project Coordinator for the Sri Lanka Design Festival and brings to his work an awareness of how to incorporate Sri Lankan crafts into contemporary design.For other young designers such as Dulari Jayaprada Seneratne and Erangani Jayawardena, sustainability must be considered a core value.
Speaking of her work, Amanda Jegarasingham lays out a philosophy for her designs: “The choices a designer makes have an impact on the way people live and interact within built forms, and enrich their emotional, social and functional experience.”
It’s clear looking at the collected works that these graduates are heading out into the world brimming with ideas, talent and determination to succeed. As a whole, they’re also a key part of AoD’s ongoing campaign to create a favourable social context for design. Says Founder/Managing Director Linda Speldewinde: “AoD is working toward communicating the reality of design careers to our society and helping them understand the enormous demand for design today…” Indisputably, this exhibition was a step in the right direction.