The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Sri Lanka (MMCA Sri Lanka) opened the third and final rotation of their exhibition ‘Total Landscaping’ on 15 March. Curated by Sandev Handy and Thinal Sajeewa, the exhibition will close on 29 May 2025.
‘Total Landscaping’ explores the broad, dramatic, and stirring ways in which land has been transformed in Sri Lanka. The exhibition brings together 29 contemporary artists whose works go beyond traditional illustrations of landscapes. Instead, their works register the different ways in which perceptions of land have been constructed and contested. ‘Total Landscaping’ unfolds as a sequence of changing displays that elicit an all-out renegotiation of our relationships with land.
“The final rotation of ‘Total Landscaping’ brings together artists who disrupt conventional ways of seeing. They challenge us to reconsider the frames—both literal and conceptual—that shape our understanding of land, history, and ecology,” said Handy, who is Senior Curator at the MMCA Sri Lanka. He added “The act of framing is never neutral—it determines what is seen, what is hidden, and how we relate to the landscapes around us. From fragmented perspectives to buried national narratives, what is represented in these works remind us that landscapes are not passive backdrops but dynamic spaces of memory, contestation, and imagination waiting to be unearthed.”
Rotation 3 of ‘Total Landscaping’ features Bandu Manamperi (b.1972), Danushka Marasinghe (b.1985), Deshan Tennekoon (b.1977), Isuri Dayaratne (b.1985), Laki Senanayake (1937–2021), M. Vijitharan (b.1985), Muhanned Cader (b.1966), Ruvin de Silva (b.1986), Sakina Aliakbar (b.1996), Suntharam Anojan (b.1991), and Tashiya de Mel (b.1991).
Sajeewa, Assistant Curator at the MMCA Sri Lanka noted that, “This exhibition was in the works for the last two years and only scratches the surface on the curatorial research we have done about landscape.” He also said that, “The reception we have had from different audiences has been exceptional. Over 10,000 people have visited the exhibition so far, including over 900 participants for student outreach events and our public programmes. Entrance to our museum and all our public programmes is free, and I encourage everyone living in or visiting Sri Lanka to drop by to view the new rotation of ‘Total Landscaping’.”
The MMCA Sri Lanka is an education-led initiative that aims to establish a public museum dedicated to the display, research, collection, and conservation of modern and contemporary art for the benefit and enjoyment of the general public, schools, and tourists. The museum is open daily from 10 am to 6 pm (except on Poya days and public holidays) on the ground floor of Crescat Boulevard, Colombo 3, and the entrance to the museum and all its public programmes are free. Information about the museum and its exhibitions and public programmes can be found via its website, www.mmca-srilanka.org, or on Facebook at facebook.com/mmcasrilanka and Instagram at instagram.com/mmcasrilanka/.
