What does AI say about the botanical term "rhizome" and its relation to art? "In art, a rhizome is a concept developed by philosophers Deleuze & Guattari that represents a non-hierarchical, multi-connected, constantly growing network, similar to the root system of a plant, symbolising freedom from singular origins or rigid structures. It is often found in digital art, in non-linear narratives or hybrid forms that emphasise 'becoming' and interconnectedness over fixed meaning or representation. It is an anti-structure: a map, not a tracing, without a centre, enabling radical connections and transformations."
With this claim, a new art gallery in Colombo opened its doors last Tuesday, welcoming its first visitors to Senanayake Mawatha 31/4, in the immediate vicinity of the Goethe-Institut. Does the gallery live up to the above-mentioned concept? Visitors are greeted by a neutral and minimalistically renovated two-storey townhouse in a rear courtyard with a total of seven exhibition rooms, in which works by 51 artists to date are presented using a picture rail system. This guarantees flexible addition and interchangeability. For visitors encountering the Sri Lankan art scene for the first time, it may be challenging to become familiar with all the names and descriptions. On the other hand, it is also an almost museum-like advantage to be able to obtain such a compact overview. The accompanying catalogue offers considerable assistance in this regard and is of exceptionally high quality. Its authors are the six founding members of Rhizome, who also serve as the curating team: Sanjeewa Kumara, Sujeewa Kumari, Vajira Gunawardena, Prageeth Rathnayake, Saman Wijesooriya and Chaturanga Gamage. Each of them is also represented as an artist, which distinguishes the concept from other curated exhibition concepts in Colombo: artists empower themselves, network, grow through constant exchange with one another and present their work with a different, maybe freer perspective than profit-oriented curators can offer. There seems to be room for improvement in terms of hierarchy: 14% of the artists exhibited are women, which seems rather low considering the large number of female artists in Sri Lanka.
As the concept is defined as open, we can probably hope for a better balance in the future. Another point would be representativeness. While some artists are presented with only one work, others are represented with up to five works. As a rule, a single painting may say little about the personality of an artist. As a visitor, I would like to see each artist presented with one wall on which up to five works could give a more satisfactory impression of their overall oeuvre. That would mean only half as many artists, but not every rhizome has to sprawl excessively; as in the case of mangrove forests, it can also offer generous passageways and thoroughfares for visitors.
With this in mind, we wish this undoubtedly interesting project balanced prosperity and generous growth!
Artists A. C. Nuwan, Vajira Gunawardena,
Aloka Bandara and Saman Wijesooriya
infront of a metal-artwork (Fish)
by Prageeth Manohansa
