The Moment Before Withering IX. Hashan Cooray approaches portraiture as a process of dismantling and reconstruction. For the artist, space is not fixed but formed through interaction — between surface and shadow, image and viewer. Influenced by biological study and his practice of drying and dissecting flowers, Cooray breaks forms apart to better understand them, then rebuilds them into shifting, unstable wholes. Figures from earlier bodies of work, from the dense corporeality of Dystopia to the uncertain beings of Parahuman, reappear here as evolving presences. In Where Depth Begins, paper faces lift gently from the canvas, hovering against soft, atmospheric grounds. Their raised surfaces cast real shadows that shift as the viewer moves, extending the image beyond the flat plane of painting. The illusion of depth becomes physical and relational. This investigation continues in True Faces That Break Like Puzzles, where portraits are segmented into anatomical fragments. Though assembled, the faces resist full resolution.
True faces that break like puzzles IX. For the artist, space is not fixed but formed through interaction — between surface and shadow, image and viewer.
Where Depth Begins IV. The image feels constructed rather than captured, asking the viewer to mentally piece together what can never be entirely complete. Working across drawing, painting, digital media, installation, and collage, Cooray integrates fragments of propaganda, advertising, and multilingual typography into his layered compositions. By repurposing the visual language of nationalism and consumer culture, he interrogates how identity is shaped — and distorted — by political rhetoric and media saturation. His gestural, textured surfaces are both abrasive and illuminating, offering a portrait not only of individuals, but of a society shaped by relentless consumption. Where Depth Begins IV. Cooray’s work has been presented at India Art Fair (2026) and leading Colombo institutions including JDA Perera Gallery, Lionel Wendt Gallery, and the Sapumal Foundation. His works are held in prominent private collections and featured in the Imago Mundi Book Project by the Benetton Foundation. Artist Hashan Cooray.Till March 23, 2026 Saskia Fernando Gallery 138 Galle Road, Colombo 3
