Arts
Signs of violence that tell a story
Berlin after the Second World War. Contemporary Sri Lanka. The Holy Land– As unconnected as they may seem, these are some of the themes on which Australian architect cum artist Mackenzie Nix has based his work. Living in Sri Lanka and working under architect Channa Daswatte since last year, Mackenzie is holding his first solo exhibition at the Barefoot Gallery.
He has no formal art training, although his art seems to draw certain traits from his architectural studies. Some of his paintings are digital prints, while others are ink drawings.
His paintings apart from being places which have some connection to his upbringing and life experiences (as a Christian, he is inspired by the stories in the Old Testament), also bring out what Mackenzie refers to as ‘violence’. For instance, one of his paintings features a series of bricks of which one solitary brick has been subtly numbered. The painting was inspired by Mackenzie’s observation of a numbered brick at the Ena de Silva House, originally built by famed architect Geoffrey Bawa that was taken apart from its original location in Colombo and rebuilt next to the Lunuganga estate in Bentota. Each brick had been numbered so that it was clear exactly where it was to be placed. Mackenzie feels that the brick denotes the ‘violence’ which the house endured.
Mackenzie’s paintings will be exhibited until September 3 at the Barefoot Gallery in Bambalapitiya.
