Six artworks by Deneth Piumakshi Veda Aracchige portray motherhood, colonialism, discrimination and cultural dominance on traditional Sri Lankan cheetha textile.
Resistance pays respect to the struggle of working women in rural villages. It features a colonial archival image and tells a story of the women with their powerful resistant gaze. This large textile piece employs blue, as it represents ‘healing’ in Buddhism and Hinduism. Once Upon a Time II reminds us of the time when countries fought for vaccinations as if they were vultures waiting to get the best piece of meat. Mother of All portrays a mother who prays for the protection of her family and community amidst the growing discrimination against Muslim communities. La nuit bleue, Je vais reste ici dans la mon rêve talks about the pain of giving birth and the trauma of death; and how a mother embraces whatever it brings to her body—whether joy or sorrow. Woman Power is the artist’s version of the Hindu goddess Kali. As women today, we need to integrate the power of Goddess Kali: the fire energy and the guiding, leading, and offering help reflected in the hand gestures. Domination represents the artist’s experience as an immigrant mother and the cultural domination she experiences on her child. She wonders how one saves the identity of a non-dominant culture and preserve its value, and whether cultural domination is, in fact, a form of modern colonization.

Deneth Piumakshi Veda Aracchige creates multidisciplinary works which engage voices, videos, photography, sculpture, painting on traditional textiles as well as embroidery on different surfaces. She has exhibited worldwide including at the 12th Berlin Biennale (2022), Theater Basel (2020) and Kolonial at the Landesmuseum in Zurich (2024).