The Green Path - The Open Air Art Gallery in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Green path (or Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha) is a two-way road on the edge of Viharamahadevi park in Colombo, Sri Lanka. While on one side is the National Art Gallery, where many antiques and cultural artefacts are on display, the side next to the park is another story. Here, artists from all over Sri Lanka showcase and sell their work, not in a gallery but right by the roadside. The paintings cover the whole fence of the park, huge six by five canvases with traditional and contemporary styles of art are displayed.

I was lucky enough to have been to this open-air gallery while I was on holiday. We were just driving past and didn’t even know there was an open gallery until we got there. The shades of the Viharamahadevi Park gives you the perfect tranquil atmosphere to enjoy the talent of the local artists. You can find an entire range of artwork from classic portraits, still images to more modern and experimental styles.

Out of the variety of fabulous artwork there, my favourite painting was a silhouette landscape of two fishermen in their boat, looking over the sunset. I like the warm colour scheme the artist has used for the sunsetting background. The silhouette of the two traditional fishermen in their boat and the temple in the background symbolise the traditional village lifestyle of a Sri Lankan. The other paintings of the same artist were more cultural. There was another artist who has captured different angles of elephants but used a more abstract approach when it comes to colouring. The vibrant colours he used gave a different twist to the paintings. I like the way the colours and the brush strokes bring movement to the piece.

I was pleasantly surprised to find such an amazing collection of artwork in the heart of the capital, Colombo. This collection inspired me to research Sri Lankan art which I didn’t know much about before. I would strongly recommend visiting the Open Air Art Gallery in Green Path if you are in the area. You could experience a fabulous journey of Sri Lankan art and maybe able to buy a painting.