The Lionel Wendt Art Centre is a major art centre and theatre in
Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...
,
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
, dedicated to the memory of Sri Lankan photographic artist
Lionel Wendt
Lionel George Henricus Wendt (3 December 1900 – 19 December 1944) was a pianist, photographer, filmmaker and critic from Sri Lanka. He was the leader of ‘43 Group, a collective of Sri Lankan artists.
The Lionel Wendt Art Centre is a major ...
theatre
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
and
art exhibition
An art exhibition is traditionally the space in which art objects (in the most general sense) meet an audience. The exhibit is universally understood to be for some temporary period unless, as is rarely true, it is stated to be a "permanent exhib ...
, with two exhibition galleries and a theatre with over 600 seats.
It is managed by a
trust
Trust often refers to:
* Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality
It may also refer to:
Business and law
* Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another
* Trust (bus ...
established by an Act of Parliament.
History
Early art exhibitions were held at Wendt's home, with the second and third taking place after
Lionel Wendt
Lionel George Henricus Wendt (3 December 1900 – 19 December 1944) was a pianist, photographer, filmmaker and critic from Sri Lanka. He was the leader of ‘43 Group, a collective of Sri Lankan artists.
The Lionel Wendt Art Centre is a major ...
's death in 1944. After his death, his brother Harry decided to open a centre in his brother's memory, but he died just a year after his brother. The construction of the centre was finished by their mutual friend,
Harold Peiris
Harold Peiris (1904–1988) was a Sri Lankan lawyer, author, scholar, teacher, patron of the arts, and philanthropist. He was the co-founder of the Lionel Wendt Art Centre and its sole life-trustee.Maxim Gorky
Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and social ...
's "
The Lower Depths
''The Lower Depths'' (russian: На дне, translit=Na dne, literally: ''At the bottom'') is a play by Russian dramatist Maxim Gorky written in 1902 and produced by the Moscow Arts Theatre on December 18, 1902 under the direction of Konstantin ...
", starring
Iranganie Serasinghe
Kala Keerthi Iranganie Roxanna Meedeniya, (born 9 June 1927"Irangani As Told to Kumar de Silva", Kumar de Silva, Samaranayake Publishers, 2013), popularly as Iranganie Serasinghe, is an actress in Sri Lankan cinema, theater and television. Since h ...
and produced by E. F. C. Ludowyk. Performances in subsequent years included
Ediriweera Sarachchandra
Dr. Veditantirige Eustace Reginold de Silva (later became Veditantirige Ediriweera Ranjitha Sarachchandra) (3 June 1914 – 16 August 1996; Sinhala: මහාචාර්ය එදිරිවීර සරච්චන්ද්ර), popularly ...
's "Maname" (1956) and
Chitrasena
Deshamanya Chitrasena (born Amaratunga Arachige Maurice Dias) (26 January 1921 – 18 July 2005) was a dancer from Sri Lanka, internationally known for his work in establishing a modern Sri Lankan tradition of dance and popularising traditiona ...
's "Karadiya" (1961).
Board of trustees
; Original
*
Harold Peiris
Harold Peiris (1904–1988) was a Sri Lankan lawyer, author, scholar, teacher, patron of the arts, and philanthropist. He was the co-founder of the Lionel Wendt Art Centre and its sole life-trustee.Paul E. Pieris
*B. G. Thornley
*L. C. van Geyzel
See also
*
Nelung Arts Centre
The Nelung Arts Center is an art center in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Opened in 2010, it houses a dance school, a theater and an art gallery. Established by the ''Nelung Arts Foundation'' which was founded by Niloufer Pieris a former Sri Lankan baller ...
*
Theatre of Sri Lanka
The Theatre of Sri Lanka encompasses many different languages and traditions. Sinhalese language theatre originated from traditional rituals and folk dramas in the 19th century. Until that period, the art was confined to small villages and didn ...