A comparative analysis of Juastin Pieris Deraniyagala and the French Cubist and Fauvist Paintings

Abstract

Painting is a mode of creative expression which grants the painter to visualize his unexposed feelings on a free surface using his own characteristics. These techniques differ from one painter to the other. Nevertheless, a controversial point has been raised about Justin Pieris Deraniyagala‘s paintings. Whereas Neville Weerarathna in his The 43 group: Chronic of 50 years of Sri Lanka highlights the reappearance of fauvist techniques in Deraniyagala‘s paintings, A. Deraniyagala in Justin Deraniyagala Oil Paintings comments about the cubist mask effects of the same author. This presence of cubist and fauvist features in the artistic language of Deraniyagala leads the critiques wonder whether he has traced fauvist and cubist features in his work or it was his authentic style which resembles particular elements in his work. It indeed is a dilemma to an exterior viewer. Thus, this work focuses on identifying whether the author has been subjected to such influence. The data was collected by conducting interviews with scholars of the field and examining selected paintings of the author. This particular analysis is effective in the field of art to identify the influence of French trends on the Sri Lankan canvas paintings. The findings highlight the fact that though being influenced by the said French movements, Deraniyagala has added his own personal touch to the Sri Lankan paintings by adding oriental characteristics that are nothing but our own.