A Literary Lunch with Shevanthie Gunasekara, was one of the highlights at the11th Shanghai International Literary Festival where she made a presentation on “A Revolutionary Route through China, Russia and Ceylon-the artistic journey of Russian émigré painter Alexander Sofronoff”.
Shevanthie, a British national of Sri Lankan parentage, came across Sofronoff at the Galle Face Hotel while talking to an old lady about the famous people who have stayed in the hotel. The story of the Russian artist had fascinated Ms. Goonesekera, a writer, art historian and an artist herself.
Born in 1901, Alexander Sofronoff fled the Russian revolution and arrived in China first in Harbin and then in Shanghai. Moving to evade Japanese invasions, he next moved to Sri Lanka in 1936 where he secured a job at the Galle Face Hotel as 'décor artist'. Sofronoff had an art studio at the hotel where he painted many portraits and has held 8 successful exhibitions of his work at the Jubilee room. He lived and died at the hotel in 1948 and left a legacy of numerous scenes and landscapes documenting the timeless beauty of the island.
Shevanthie is the author of the book “Mount Lavinia, The Governor’s Palace” which was published in 2006 and a second edition will be reprinted this year. Shevanthie is currently working on her second book documenting the life and influences of the Russian Artist, Alexander Sofronoff.
Her presentation was followed by a lively interactive discussion about her endeavours to find the current locations of the paintings of Sofronoff, which most are believed be outside of Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, the Deputy Consul General of the Russian Federation has agreed to support her mission to know more about the life of the artist in Shanghai.
Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Shanghai supported the participation of Ms. Shevanthie Gunasekara at the festival.
Consulate General of Sri Lanka
Shanghai
