Chandraguptha Thenuwara has been very busy. This afternoon was the opening of an exhibition at the Maroondah Art Gallery, organised by Damien Smith, which featured some barrels that Chandraguptha had painted specially for the exhibition, along with some very find drawings, paintings and prints. In a very kind gesture, Chandraguptha has donated the barrels to the council. Chandraguptha spoke of the strangeness of yellow as a camouflage colour in Sri Lankan barrels - a colour that makes them stand out rather than blend in. He mentioned an interest in barrelism that might be found in other countries. In Cairo recently, he found was he thought was a 'doorism', reflecting the security screening frames at the entrance of all public buildings. When prompted about what Melbourne's version of 'barrelism' might be, he spoke about a more internal sense of alertness to terrorism, though said this didn't affect the friendliness that he found on Melbourne streets. However, in conversation he did express a surprise at the level of swearing amongst youth in a centre where he is working -- 'four letter words'. Strange that this kind of verbal violence is perfectly reasonable to Melbournians, though it shocks a person by comparison with the military violence in Sri Lanka. So what is the Melbourne equivalent of barrelism? Far more prevalent in Melbourne are bollards that subtly define the excluded areas of public space. Could there be bollardism in Melbourne? Thanks Chandraguptha for raising this question.
Chandraguptha Thenuwara has been very busy. This afternoon was the opening of an exhibition at the Maroondah Art Gallery, organised by Damien Smith, which featured some barrels that Chandraguptha had painted specially for the exhibition, along with some very find drawings, paintings and prints. In a very kind gesture, Chandraguptha has donated the barrels to the council. Chandraguptha spoke of the strangeness of yellow as a camouflage colour in Sri Lankan barrels - a colour that makes them stand out rather than blend in. He mentioned an interest in barrelism that might be found in other countries. In Cairo recently, he found was he thought was a 'doorism', reflecting the security screening frames at the entrance of all public buildings. When prompted about what Melbourne's version of 'barrelism' might be, he spoke about a more internal sense of alertness to terrorism, though said this didn't affect the friendliness that he found on Melbourne streets. However, in conversation he did express a surprise at the level of swearing amongst youth in a centre where he is working -- 'four letter words'. Strange that this kind of verbal violence is perfectly reasonable to Melbournians, though it shocks a person by comparison with the military violence in Sri Lanka. So what is the Melbourne equivalent of barrelism? Far more prevalent in Melbourne are bollards that subtly define the excluded areas of public space. Could there be bollardism in Melbourne? Thanks Chandraguptha for raising this question. 
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