Sri Lanka’s internationally acclaimed open-air Art Fair – Kala Pola – unfolds on Sunday, 25th January 2015 along Nelum Pokuna Mawatha in Colombo.

Presented by The George Keyt Foundation in association with the John Keells Group, Kala Pola 2015 opens at 8.00 am and will continue for thirteen hours non-stop until 9 pm the same night. As in the past, Kala Pola is expected to attract several thousands of visitors from different parts of the country as Colombo explodes in a psychedelic riot of colour.

Drawing inspiration from similar open-air Art Fairs in Europe, notably Montmartre in the French capital Paris, Sri Lanka’s Kala Pola has morphed into a rich cultural event over the years and is today a much-awaited and not-to-be-missed event in Colombo’s annual cultural calendar.

Presented since 1993 by The George Keyt Foundation, Kala Pola has continued to enjoy the generous patronage and strong partnership of the John Keells Group over the past 22 years under its corporate social responsibility programme which is committed to supporting the development and promotion of the arts and culture of Sri Lanka.
“Kala Pola has played a pivotal role these past two decades as a successful catalyst in enhancing a keener appreciation of art among the public of Sri Lanka”, affirms the Chairman of The George Keyt Foundation, Cedric de Silva. “The number of both artists and visitors has grown rapidly and this year too we expect an even larger turnout. Apart from fostering the creation and appreciation of good art, Kala Pola is also a lucrative source of income for the artists. We are once again thankful to the John Keells Group for its invaluable patronage and the tremendous source of strength it has been to us during these two decades”, de Silva added.

Head of CSR John Keells Holdings, Ms. Nadija Tambiah, said that the benefit that both artists and the community derived from Kala Pola was a manifestation of John Keells Foundation’s vision of `Empowering the Nation for Tomorrow’. “Kala Pola is an important launch pad for artists and sculptors to embark on and build their careers and has launched several artists at a national level and some even in the international arena. At the same time it provides a platform for artists to learn from one another and permits society at large to appreciate local art, thus fostering Sri Lankan art in a multitude of genres and styles. From modest beginnings Kala Pola has grown into an international event and we are happy to see more original Sri Lankan art adorning the walls of homes and offices both in Sri Lanka and overseas”.

Meanwhile, John Keells Foundation continues to host Sri Lanka’s first corporate digital art gallery (www.srilankanartgallery.com) enabling Sri Lankan artists to showcase and sell their work throughout the year to local and foreign buyers. The main website, Sri Lankan Art Gallery, also hosts the “John Keells Art Gallery” which is a platform for a collection of curated art, selected by a panel of curators who are experts in their field. The curated site, thereby also provides an aspirational element to the artists who are registered on the Sri Lankan Art Gallery as they are able to benchmark their work against the curated selections for their own development and growth.

As it has always been in previous years, Kala Pola 2015 is free of charge and open to the public. A major tourist attraction, it is billed to attract thousands of visitors from all parts of Sri Lanka and from different parts of the world on Sunday, 25th January. They will all indulge in its atmosphere of bonhomie, camaraderie and cultural entertainment and bask in the infectious feeling of an exciting summer art-fest right in the heart of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Photo caption: At the Head Table (from left): Trustee of the George Keyt Foundation Arun Dias Bandaranaike and Michael Anthonisz; Nihal Rodrigo - Deputy Chairman, George Keyt Foundation; Cedric de Silva - Chairman, George Keyt Foundation; Nadija Tambiah - Head of CSR, John Keells Holdings PLC and artists R. Pragash, Chrita Lay and Jagath Ravindra