A Guitarist Meets An Artist – An Exchange

Isuru has been playing the guitar for over 20 years. Using his custom-made, double neck guitar, he combines his experience in the blues with Hindustani and Carnatic traditions. He has played at numerous local and international venues ranging from the Singapore F1 Grand Prix and Kalaa Utsavam (2017-2021) to the Atman Festival (Sri Lanka) and Oz Asia Festival (Australia). Isuru has just released an album, Third Culture, and its available on all streaming platforms.

Menaka is a multi-disciplinary international artist, curator and creative director in visual and performing arts, theatre, film and design. She received her Master of Fine Arts from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (USA) and has curated and exhibited at the The Philip and Muriel Berman Museum of Art, International House Philadelphia, The Rotunda and Twelve Gates Arts, just to name a few. In Singapore, her artworks have been featured as a permanent installation at the Indian Heritage Centre, an exhibition for Alapadma, along with a classical Indian dance production by Apsaras Arts at The Esplanade. She has also created production and set designs for theatre productions like S.I.T.F.E’s Thuyil and Theatre Incorporate’s Project Roop Kaur, large-scale public art installations like Sea of Sarees, Art Street on Campbell lane and Tusker’s Kingdom in Little India, as well as mural art works in Kampong Glam. Menaka has also guest-lectured at University of Pennsylvania and worked at the National Heritage Board where she oversaw the inauguration of the Indian Heritage Centre and cultivated the arts, culture and heritage sectors through innovative programmes and festivals with communities and artists. She is currently the Executive Director at the Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society (SIFAS).