Ode to innovation & tradition
The dazzling opening night of Colombo Fashion Week (CFW) Summer 2025 on February 19 at Shangri-La Colombo saw a stunning showcase of vibrant designs, innovative silhouettes and an ode to traditional Sri Lankan craftsmanship. Featuring over 25 designers from Sri Lanka, Italy, India and Bangladesh, this season of CFW marked the launch of multiple initiatives, [...]
Appreciations
Your memory and legacy will remain in our hearts Lakshman Wijewardene It is two decades since my father Lakshman Wijewardene passed away and today as I pen this appreciation of him, nostalgic memories come rushing to my mind. Time has gone by very swiftly but the memory of him, his kind deeds and the role [...]
Dr. “Poologs” turned Bawa’s designs into reality
Born in 1932, Dr. Kandasamy Poologasundram graduated with first-class honours in engineering from the University of Ceylon. After winning a scholarship to pursue a Doctorate in Engineering at Imperial College in London, he returned to Colombo in 1960 to work as a project engineer with the State Cement Corporation. During this time, Dr. Poologasundram provided [...]
Down memory lane
Last week I walked, after many years, down the lane where my best friend used to live. And I felt sad. During my schooldays this used to be in a genteel part of Colombo, the lane broad enough to allow two cars to barely edge past without scraping each other. The lane was quiet enough [...]
Rani: The road not taken
Many, many years ago, a slightly dubious but otherwise excellent Belgian theatre director by the name of Rudi Corens put on the boards what is probably one of the oldest plays in the world. The Libation Bearers by Aeschylus, is a powerful reflection on a mother’s anguish and vengeance over the loss of her child. [...]
In Search of Nihal Fernando, a touching visual offering
Dr. Martin Pieris’s new film dips into the life and legacy of Nihal Fernando of Studio Times fame, after his two earlier films on Julia Margaret Cameron and Laki Senanayake. Dr. Pieris, an old boy of St. Peter’s Bambalapitiya (like Nihal), but residing today in Australia, has with the visual acumen of a seasoned photographer [...]
18th Century war rockets and battles against the Dutch
Anandalal Nanayakkara will talk on the “Use of War Rockets by the Sinhalese during the 18th Century’ in the monthly lecture of the National Trust on Friday, February 28 at 6 p.m. at the Auditorium of the College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka, No. 6, Independence Avenue, Colombo 7. (For those who join online: https://youtube.com/live/fPC4VOXnE5c?feature=share) [...]
Shani returns with Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor
Over the years, Sri Lankan audiences have been captivated by her remarkable artistry. Shani Diluka is returning to Sri Lanka for a much-anticipated performance, this time bringing to life one of the most beloved works in the piano repertoire—Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor. The concert, presented by the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka [...]
Kintsugi, a book from Anoma and Romesh
In the finely wrought Japanese restoration technique of Kintsugi, where broken porcelain is mended with gold lacquer, the flaws are highlighted rather than concealed. It’s a concept that appealed to the artist Anoma Wijewardene whose work has always responded to the world around her. Her brush with Kintsugi began ten years ago and it so [...]