Luka Alagiyawanna unveils ‘From This Point Forward’ A powerful graphic reflecting several emotions

On Sunday night, the ninth of March, a group of young people were busy with pots of home-made glue along the Marine Drive at Bambalapitiya. A few passing vehicles slowed out of curiosity, but no one could have guessed at that point that a photography exhibition of a unique kind was taking shape there under a clear tropical sky.
Luka Alagiyawanna, a young photographer of mixed German-Sri Lankan heritage, and a group of friends were busy unveiling ‘From This Point Forward,’ a public space installation which combines writing, drawing and photography, with monochrome photographs, the dominant element. Though such installations are now common all over the world, they are still a novelty here in Sri Lanka.

Though the installation was expected to be there on the high yellow-ochre boundary wall of the Bambalapitiya Railway Station, it was removed with an astonishing thoroughness by 11 a.m. the next day, presumably by the Municipality. Though the artist had obtained permission from the Bambalapitiya Station Master, she had not thought of informing the Municipal authorities. As we learned later, the railway department owns the inside of the wall, while the Municipality claims the outside!
That was a swift lesson in bureaucratic retribution, though one would have expected a little mercy in this case, so obviously an art or social media project with no advertising overtones.


Though the installation was expected to be there on the high yellow-ochre boundary wall of the Bambalapitiya Railway Station, it was removed with an astonishing thoroughness by 11 a.m. the next day, presumably by the Municipality.



‘From This Point Forward’ took five weeks to complete. Luka Alagiyawanna selected ten volunteers, friends as well as strangers, as subjects. But they weren’t merely passive subjects staring at a camera. She wanted subject participation from the outset.

The group is multi-ethnic, male and female, and differ in background, ranging from students to a singer, teacher and a computer analyst. The huge ‘murals’ , sitting next to each other on a wall, create a powerful graphic which reflects several layers of emotions – hope, despair, inner anxiety, expectancy, always muted.

“People are so used to the idea of exhibitions in a gallery,” Luka said. “This is so different.”


The group is multi-ethnic, male and female, and differ in background, ranging from students to a singer, teacher and a computer analyst. The huge ‘murals’ , sitting next to each other on a wall, create a powerful graphic which reflects several layers of emotions – hope, despair, inner anxiety, expectancy, always muted


As she conducted a one-day photography workshop at the Goethe Institute on Sunday, actor and dramatist Ruvin de Silva conducted a parallel drama workshop. As all ten pictures were finally pasted on the wall close to midnight, each printed in several pieces and joined together, the overall ambiance was one of imminent drama. These ten young faces were telling us their stories with a silent intensity that was almost overpowering.

Even the actual exhibit is no longer there, the virtual version can be seen on Luka’s Faebook page (www.facebook.com/fromthispointforwardproject).
Photos by Gnanewaran Maheswaran