Rare Exhibition of Paintings in London by a Russian Artist living in Sri Lanka
Shevanthie Goonesekera curated her first major exhibition in London of impressionist paintings by a recently discovered Russian Emigre artist, Alexander Sofronoff. The exhibition was hosted by The Rossotrudnichestvo, the cultural arm of the Russian Embassy in Kensington, London on 6th November 2013 and was supported by the Russian Ambassador, H.E Mr Yakovenko.
Alexander Sofronoff lived on the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) for 12 years having fled Russia in 1919 during the Revolution, graduating at The Art Industrial School in Ekaterinburg. This artist’s life was one of upheaval and movement travelling to China, but despite all the challenges he faced, he had an exceptional flair for painting and an ingenious eye for the use of colours. The Japanese invasion into Shanghai took him to Ceylon in 1936 where he travelled to the island as a theatrical scene painter with the Shanghai Russian Ballet Company. A total of 38 paintings from individual private collections were on display in London at the state of art Russian Cultural Centre, with owners loaning their paintings from across the UK for the 3 day exhibition. This very rare exhibition focused on the final phase of the artist’s life in Ceylon where he found a peaceful refuge to paint the diverse scenes he came across while travelling the length and breadth of the island.
Sofronoff was a versatile and talented artist who excelled in his paintings of the tropics. He had a confident understanding of colour that reflected and matched the tones of the tropics and he was fascinated by light and atmospheric weather conditions. The paintings exhibited captured a variety of scenes; Pettah Market, up country and low country, mountain scenes of Namunukula, Ella Gap and Adams Peak, night time village scenes, moonlight seascape scenes, landscapes, portraits and still life including delicately painted orchids – each with a certain vibrancy catching the lushness and heat of Sri Lanka.
Rare Exhibition of Paintings in London by a Russian Artist living in Sri Lanka
Cultural Attaché, Mr Artyom Kozhin, Shevanthie Goonesekera, curator, the former British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka
The opening of the exhibition was followed by an illustrated lecture and presentation with the writer, Shevanthie Goonesekera sharing her fascination for the artist’s life and journey across a revolutionary route, which she recalls all started when she purchased a painting by this artist in a Fine Art Auction in England. Shevanthie believes that it is evident from many of the works on display that Sofronoff finally found a perfect sanctuary on the island.
The event was attended by 90 people in the presence of Mr Artyom Kozhin, the Russian Cultural attaché and Anton Chesnokov, the Director of The Rossotrudnichestvo, (photographed below with Shevanthie Goonesekera) who expressed how impressed they were with the quality and professionalism of this major event and how masterfully the story of this Russian artist’s life was dedicatedly pieced together and thanked Ranjiv Goonawardena on his achievement in personally speaking to the Russian Ambassador to bring this event to the attention of a wider Russian audience in London.
Shevanthie, who wrote the book Mount Lavinia, the Governor’s Palace’(of which a second edition is due to be released this December), is currently working on her next book on the life, the journey and influences of this unknown Russian Emigre artist. She had been invited earlier this year to China to speak at the Shanghai Literary Festival where she met Mr Alexander Pavlov, the Deputy Consul General of the Russian Federation.
Shevanthie was delighted to speak and curate an exhibition at The Rossotrudnichestvo in London, (the city where she resides) and was extremely grateful for the support and interest vested in her by the Russian Embassy and staff.
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