Neil Ratnavira

Neil Ratnavira De Alwis an abstract expressionist born on August 7th, 1978 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He was brought up by his single mother and grand mother in a country torn apart by civil war. The first years of his life, schooling was intermittent and life constantly interrupted by curfews, exploding car bombs, buses and building set on fire.

When the opportunity presented itself in 1989 his Mother and him moved to Paris, France, leaving behind his beloved grand-mother and extended family. In reality, Neil never had a say in this move and life was never going to be the same again.

It seemed like he had exchanged one ordeal for another... it was a different type of war. Arriving in Paris as a child, not speaking a word of French was one of the most difficult challenges he faced. Parisians did not take lightly to foreigners who did't speak their language. Neil did not know which was worse, leaving behind a loving family and his war torn country or stepping out into the streets of Paris & being treated like a transgressor of sorts because of the color of his skin. Despite moving to one of the most glamorous cities in the world Neil’s family lived in the roughest areas of Paris. His family was poor and the battle for sur...

BA in Graphic Arts, Lycée Claude Garamont 1999.

Paris 1994, London 2015, Los Angeles 2009, San Diego 2010 and 2015