Pala Pothupitiya, a member of Theertha International Artists’ Collective, is currently based in Colombo and works as a full-time professional artist. His artwork has been shown in a number of art exhibitions in Sri Lanka as well as internationally.
Let me tell you where I am coming from
And where I want to go.
I come from a long line of ritual dancers.
When I was a child, I used to help my father
Make costumes for his dance.
I also practiced dancing with him.
After a few years — I must have been eleven or twelve years old —
All this came to a stop. My father was famous in my village.
Yet ritual dancers belong to a low caste in our society,
And fellow students used to pick on me about it.
My family did not want me to suffer. And told me to stop.
As a result, for many years, I tried to hide this.
When I came to University, I realized
That our dance forms are not included
In the canon of European art practices.
Our dance forms are considered craft or ritual
And outside so-called European “aesthetics.”
I started to think more carefully
About this art I left behind.
I felt I found myself and my father
When I started working on my own art.
This process took twenty-seven years,
Which is why I feel I should honor my father.
I should also mention Jagath Weerasinghe,
Who understood what I was trying to do.
He is the one who told me
Do what you like.
After a long journey,
Through this work,
I was able to find out more
About myself and my world.
