10 paintings  watercolour and ink  17cm x 12cm on paper

This series is based around the idea of lost and found love. The rediscovery of partners thought missing and the power of love to rebuild lives.

My work has always had a narrative base although I don’t start with a written text. It is more I tell stories through images, each painting suggesting the next and building into a series of paintings which talk to each other

The use of the small format encourages close examination and a personal engagement with each painting whilst as a series they compliment and suggest different meanings within this unwritten story.

I have long wanted to use the Makara, a legendary sea creature and a part of many different religions and countries iconography. In this series it represents the guardian to thresholds , new beginnings, and doorways to the future. Combined with the Crow who brings wisdom as well as being a cleaner and tidier of detritus, they watch over the various meetings of the lovers as they garland each other in celebration.
Also there is the figure of the Second Son, the traveller, and more relevant here the colonialist. Now lying down and a part of history he is never the less a part of the past that has led to wars and the divisiveness of difference.

I have exhibited with Barefoot Gallery in Colombo for over 20 years and my understanding of and love of Sri Lanka has grown with every painting. Creating this series has once again made me look and think about the new country which is emerging in the 21st century, a very different one to the one I first visited all those years ago.