Art, books and more at Adahas Pola
It proved to be a very vibrant Colombo 7 spin on the bustling village marketplace when Shaan Corea of Appe Lanka hosted ‘Adahas Pola: Celebrating the People of Sri Lanka’ at Maniumpathy on Saturday, March 5 with artistic events happening by the pool, in the study, the foyer, the front garden and the serene shade of ambalama in the garden.
The cosy foyer of the old house turned boutique hotel hosted an eclectic collection of photographs and art curated by Nelun Harasgama.
There was a conversation with the Chitrasena Dance Company and the Kandyan dance troupe of Bishop’s College in ecclesiastic purple presented a beautiful performance by the pool.
Later in the evening was a celebration of The Styles of Lanka with Buddhi Batik, Ohe Island and Aashkii.
The Ambalama was the venue of a Gratiaen discussion with past winners Vihanga Fernando, Elmo Jayawardena, Lal Medawattegedera and Dr. Carmel Miranda.
Artist Pala Pothupitiya spoke of “Creating a life through art and objects’ while environmental architect Sunela Jayawardene’s talk was titled Going Green. Ameena Hussein talked about her book Chasing Tall Tales and Mystics.
The evening ended with the Jassa Lenchina Kolama, traditional village entertainment in the courtyard where goodhumoured slapstick and the bawdy, with song and dance and masked characters, created hilarity.
Home grown and home financed, Appe Lanka works with the core belief that if as Sri Lankans we come together sharing our time, talents, resources and different expertise we can create a country we’d be proud to call home.