G. S. Fernando (1904 - 1990)

“At times art cannot be fully understood or appreciated unless an account is taken of certain fundamental artists. Gamvasi Senarath Fernando was one of them. In most of his works the three letters G.S.F. was endorsed and was familiar and known to every art lover. Beside being the chief exponent of the type of painting known as ‘picturesque’ he was responsible for removing the deeply rooted prejudice which insisted that the function of art was to represent man since by its nature art was ‘the work of man’.” – Tissa Hewavitarana

Gamwasi Senarath Fernando is one of the versatile artists who dominated the art industry of Sri Lanka during the 20th century, engaging in painting, cartoons, designing, poster-making as well as picture stories. He was born in Suddhagoda, Bentara and moved to Colombo when he was 14 to satisfy his father’s wish for him to become an Ayurvedic physician. However, when Richard Henricus, artist and set designer realized Fernando’s potential in visual art and painting, he was encouraged to study art further under renowned art teachers M. Sarlis and A.C.G.S. Amarasekara. He later worked at the Times of Ceylon newspaper as a commercial and professional artist along with several of his contemporaries including S. Doraisamy, Reggie Candappa and Donald Ramanayake. Fernando continued his work at the Times of Ceylon Newspaper Group under the wing of Aubrey Collette, eventually becoming the chief artist and political cartoonist of the Sinhala newspaper Lankadeepa. To this date, he is known for the picture stories including “Neela”, designed for children that appeared in Lankadeepa. Fernando also went on to create book covers for many celebrated writers such as Piyadasa Sirisena, Martin Wickremasinghe, W.A. Silva and G.B. Senanayake, while engaging in the exercise of creating artwork for advertisements.

Apart from the art he created as a commercial and professional artist, Fernando’s repute can be associated with the landscape paintings he did using watercolour as his main medium. His works of historical and religious sites relate the beauty and heritage of Sri Lanka with a calming and gripping effect on the viewer. The painting “Sigiriya”, completed in the 1960s presents the world heritage site of the Sigiriya rock, a valued cultural emblem of the country. The painting depicts the rock surrounded by a lake, adding a significant element of natural beauty to it that complements its cultural, historical and religious connotations. “Bullock Cart” is another landscape painting by Fernando that dates back to the 1950s. The work portrays a bullock cart with a burning chena hut in the background. The elegant brush strokes of watercolour render the urgency of the situation depicted, with the agility of the bulls and the smoke arising from the hut highlighted. Fernando’s style in his landscape paintings is not one that is defined by bright colours; rather, his is a minimal colour palette aimed at capturing scenery as realistically as possible. His work, recognized for their impeccable watercolour technique and narratives that capture the island of Sri Lanka, has been exhibited extensively in local as well as several international galleries.

Name of Exhibition Year Place

Other Publicaitons the Artist has been mentioned in
Name of Book Year of Publication Author Printer
Lord Buddha Advising a Mother with a Dead Child

Ref :GSF 2

Title :Lord Buddha Advising a Mother with a Dead Child

Signed :Lower Right

Measurements in Cms :14.5 x 20.5

Material Used :Ink on Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :14.5 x 20.5

Lord Buddha in the Forest

Ref :GSF 6

Title :Lord Buddha in the Forest

Signed :Lower Right

Measurements in Cms :15.5 x 20

Material Used :Ink on Stiff Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :15.5 x 20

Just before the Charge

Ref :GSF 7

Title :Just before the Charge

Signed :Lower Right

Measurements in Cms :27 x 15.5

Material Used :Ink on Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :27 x 15.5

Prince Siddhartha

Ref :GSF 8

Title :Prince Siddhartha

Signed :Lower Left

Measurements in Cms :26.5 x 15

Material Used :Ink on Stiff Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :26.5 x 15

The prince

Ref :GSF 9

Title :The prince

Signed :Lower Bottom

Measurements in Cms :24.5 x 19

Material Used :Ink on Stiff Card

Dimensions in Cms. :24.5 x 19

Raban Players

Ref :GSF 3

Title :Raban Players

Signed :Lower Right

Measurements in Cms :13 x 20

Material Used :Ink on Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :13 x 20

The Lake

Ref :GSF 13

Title :The Lake

Signed :Lower Right

Measurements in Cms :38 x 50.5

Material Used :Water Colour on Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :38 x 50.5

The Mask

Ref :GSF 19

Title :The Mask

Signed :Lower Middle

Measurements in Cms :43 x 33

Material Used :Water Colour on Paper

Dimensions in Cms. :43 x 33

Landscape

Ref :GSF 21

Title :Landscape

Signed :Lower Left

Measurements in Cms :47 x 68

Material Used :Oil on Canvas

Dimensions in Cms. :47 x 68

Year Institute Qualification
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