Series: "Know our Member Artists"

KUMAR SAMARANAYAKE A.O.C.A.D

Kumar Samaranayake was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka and immigrated to Canada in 1975. He is the youngest in the family of two brothers, two sisters and four pet elephants. He studied Architecture at Carleton University in Ottawa and graduated in Industrial Design from Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto.

Kumar has loved to sketch and paint as long as he can remember and is a self-taught artist. It is only very recently that he has started to paint seriously after persistent encouragement from his family and friends. Watercolor is his first love but he is continually exploring other media in Acrylic, Oil, Encaustic and multi-media. He is a versatile artist who can adapt different styles and methods to suite his subject matter. This approach keeps his work fresh and exciting. Mostly he likes to incorporate bold colors with a loose style that leaves something
for your immagination. His work is influenced by artists such as John Singer Sargent, Winslow Homer and Edward Seago.

He is a member of Springbank Artists and Mississauga Art Society since 1997. In the Fall of 2001, his first solo show “Ephemeral 1 ” meaning “Changing light” was very well received and has become an annual event since. Several times his paintings were selected to juried shows held by Visual Arts Mississauga and Oakville Arts Council. Twice he has won first and second place in Valentine show with Visual Arts Mississauga. His paintings are in private collections in Canada, USA, France, Hong Kong, Australia and Sri Lanka.

Presently he freelances as a graphic designer, illustrator and teaches part time at Visual Arts Mississauga which allows him to devote more of his time to paint. For over fourteen years he worked as a creative director for a reputable advertising agency in Toronto. His graphic design work has nominated and won numerous SAM ( Sales and Marketing) awards in Real Estate field in Toronto and throughout Canada.

Kumar lives in Mississauga with his wife and three children. He continues to devote his spare time to paint. His work is represented by galleries in Mississauga, Streetsville, Oakville and Schomberg,Ontario. He accepts commission work for Fine art, Illustration, Graphic design and just about everything in between.

(905)569-3448 or samk1@rogers.com

www.yessy.com/samk1/