About the work

Muhanned Cader (b.1966, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Lives and works in Galle) abstracts and fragments Sri Lanka’s natural environment through his paintings, drawings, collages and accordion books. Refuting conventional framings and landscape traditions, Cader creates visual vignettes with unique shapes that are vitalised by the use of jewel-like pigments or soft layers of charcoal. While majestic, these pieces often allude to salient moments in Sri Lanka’s history. As an artist associated with the ‘90s Trend, a group who responded critically to Sri Lanka’s Civil War from 1983-2009, Cader’s images are underscored by a scepticism of colonial and post-colonial governmental policy. Alluring environments of lush trees and glistening shorelines belie a land negotiating heavy extractive activities and overdevelopment.

Date and country of birth

1966, LK

Career Highlights

His work has been exhibited widely in solo and group shows internationally, in venues including:

The Box, Plymouth, UK (2024); Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale, Saudi Arabia (2024, forthcoming); KALĀ, Lionel Wendt Art Centre, Colombo, Sri Lanka (2024, forthcoming); MK Gallery, Milton Keynes, UK (2023); Tristan Hoare Gallery, London, UK (2022); Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Colombo, Sri Lanka (2019); Colomboscope, Colombo, Sri Lanka (2019); Lahore Biennale 01, Lahore, Pakistan (2018); Dhaka Art Summit, Dhaka, Bangladesh (2018).

Cader’s work is included in the collections of Burger Collection, Hong Kong, China; Devi Art Foundation, New Delhi, India; Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Ithaca, USA; Ishara Art Foundation, Dubai, UAE; Jameel Art Foundation, Dubai, UAE; Kiran Nadar Museum, New Delhi, India; Samdani Art Foundation, Dhaka, Bangladesh.