Chathurika Jayani’sDreamscapesis an exhibition of paintings that consists of heavy set coloursand textures depicting a fantastical urban situation. While the artist’s work explores themes ofurbanism and city building, her painted structures, which could be described as ahistorical, oftenrefer to the omnipresent and corrugated tiling sheets found on buildings across the country. Herapproach is a conceptual one, where the architectural subject is observed and painted fromseveral perspectives, including the literal and the abstract. Through these conceptual structures,Jayani participates in a global conversation about the current state of architecture and urbanplanning. For example, one may travel to several cities in different countries to find the samestyles and types of building,sometimes produced by the same architectural studios. In somecases it would make little difference which country one were to find themselves in; whilespectacular in nature, the experience of these places may be all too similar
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Underlying the majorityof these works is a foreboding reflection on the relationship betweenurbanism and the environment. Whereas the idea of floating cities in the sky, spurred on by thespeed of engineering and technology, may be awe-inspiring, Jayani’s paintings question themoralconduct of these extensive construction projects. What are the terms of their legacy? What dothey choose to leave behind, leave out all together, and take with them?Dreamscapesmuses onthe tension between utopian design and dystopian reality; arethe constant attempts of urbanexpansion a pure fantasy, devoid of being grounded and respectful about the difference in therealities of the poor and the privileged? These paintings question the historical validity ofcontemporary construction projects,as they often displace pre-existing communities and theirneighbourhoods, with inadequate compensation.
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