b. (1975)
Priyantha Udagedara is one of the most renowned artists and art historians in Sri Lanka with a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Contemporary Fine Art Practice and a Master of Arts degree in Contemporary Art and Design Practice from the Faculty of Arts and Design, Leeds Metropolitan University, through the "President Scholarship" awarded by the President's Fund, Sri Lanka, in the year 2006. Priyantha chose the UK to further develop his talent and passion for painting and completed his MA in 2007 and his PHD in 2013 in Contemporary Fine Art Practice at Leeds Metropolitan University. Priyantha's works have been greatly influenced by his experience of conflict and political unrest in Sri Lanka from 1983 onwards.
The so called peaceful paradisiac island that he once knew had turned into a scarred monster where crisis had penetrated the norm and disrupted the perceptions of a serene and peaceful place as portrayed in all the tourist brochures. Since the year 2018, he has been serving as a Senior Lecturer at the Department of History and Art Theory at the University of the Visual and Performing Arts in Colombo. He is a practicing artist specializing in paintings and has exhibited nationally and internationally in countries including Sri Lanka, India, Australia, Portugal, Dubai, America and Great Britain.
Udagedara's current body of work consists of an ensemble of floral depictions which are tropical and endemic, as well as exotic and foreign. These floral clusters alongside their corresponding leaves form a well knitted tapestry a myriad of flowers in vibrant acrylic shades of red, orange, yellow, golden, blue, mauve, white and more. Paper cuttings of botanical or magazine-extracted images of flowers and plants, pieces of household or cheeththa cloth with their printed designs and open mesh fabric come together to create this potpourri of blossoms and branches.