Colour has always been part of Chaya de Silva’s world. Growing up in Sri Lanka within a family involved in traditional batik, she was surrounded by richly coloured fabrics, dyes and patterns from an early age. Today, those influences find their way into paintings that combine bold colour, expressive movement and heavily textured surfaces, often incorporating lace, fabric and thread.
Now based in the UK, de Silva has developed a distinctive mixed-media practice that explores identity, memory, womanhood and personal transformation. Her paintings often feature female figures who appear both powerful and vulnerable, reflecting different emotions and experiences rather than representing particular individuals. Working instinctively, she builds layers of paint and materials, allowing each composition to develop naturally and often discovering its meaning through the process of making.
Having begun her artistic journey as a self-taught painter, de Silva has exhibited internationally, including at FLUX Exhibition London in 2024. More recently, she was an artist in residence at art’otel London Battersea Power Station and presented her solo exhibition Kaleidoscope with Kaizen Fine Art in October 2026. Her practice has also extended beyond the gallery through collaborations with major brands, including Sony Pictures UK, Audible UK, Xbox UK and Lloyds Bank.
Despite these achievements, experimentation remains central to her approach. Rather than settling into a fixed style, de Silva continues to explore new materials, subjects and ways of expressing the experiences that shape her work.
In this interview with The FLUX Review, de Silva discusses her Sri Lankan heritage, the women who inhabit her paintings, the emotional significance of colour and texture, and her continuing evolution as an artist.
Your work is immediately recognisable for its colour, texture and energy. How did you arrive at the visual language you use today?
I think it has been a journey of experimentation and allowing myself the freedom to explore. I’ve always been drawn to colour, but over time I became more interested in how I could make a painting feel as well as look. I started experimenting with different materials, building layers, using palette knives, fabrics, threads and other textures.
My work has evolved quite naturally through trying things, making mistakes and discovering what feels right to me. I don’t like to restrict myself to one way of working. I think my visual language comes from a combination of my Sri Lankan roots, my experiences and my love of colour and expression. I want my paintings to have a presence, something that draws you in and makes you want to spend time looking at them.
You grew up around batik and textile-making within your family. In what ways do you think those early experiences still find their way into your paintings?
Growing up in Sri Lanka, I was surrounded by textiles, patterns, dyes and the process of making things by hand. My family has a background in batik, so those materials and techniques were part of my childhood, even before I fully understood their artistic value.
Looking back, I realise how much those early experiences influenced the way I work today. The idea of layering, the relationship between colour and fabric, and the beauty of something handmade have stayed with me. I often incorporate lace, fabric and threads into my paintings, almost as a way of reconnecting with that part of my upbringing.
I think my work carries a little piece of where I come from, but interpreted through my own experiences and the life I have built here in the UK.
The women in your paintings often feel very present and emotionally charged. Who are these figures to you, and where do they begin?
The women in my paintings are not necessarily portraits of specific people. They are more like reflections of different emotions, experiences and stages of womanhood. Sometimes they represent strength, sometimes vulnerability, solitude or the feeling of finding yourself again.
I think there is a little bit of me in many of them, but they are also inspired by women around me and the different stories we all carry. As a woman and a mother, I have experienced different versions of myself over the years, and I think that naturally finds its way into my work.
I don’t always begin with a clear idea of who the woman is. Sometimes she develops through the painting process, and I discover her personality as the layers come together.
Texture is such a strong element in your work, with layers of paint and mixed media creating very tactile surfaces. What draws you to building the surface in this way?
For me, painting is not just about what you see; it’s also about what you feel. I’ve always loved working with my hands and experimenting with materials. I enjoy building up thick layers of paint with palette knives, adding fabrics, lace, threads and different mediums to create depth.
I love the way light catches the raised surfaces and creates shadows. A painting can look completely different depending on where you stand and how the light falls on it.
I also like that the process is a little unpredictable. Sometimes a layer doesn’t work, so I add another, and something unexpected happens. I think those imperfections and discoveries give the work its character. I want people to experience the painting beyond the image itself.
Colour seems to carry a great deal of emotion in your work. Do you choose a palette instinctively, or does the meaning of a painting begin to determine the colours?
It’s usually instinctive. Colour is one of the first things I respond to when I start painting. I don’t always plan a palette or decide exactly which colours I will use. I tend to follow my feelings and see where the painting takes me.
For me, colour has its own emotional language. A particular combination can feel energetic, peaceful, nostalgic or even a little uncomfortable. I love working with bold contrasts because they create a certain tension and energy.
Sometimes the meaning of a painting becomes clearer as I work, and the colours begin to support that feeling. But I rarely want to overthink it. I trust my instincts quite a lot when it comes to colour.
Themes of identity, memory and personal transformation run through much of your practice. Are these subjects you consciously set out to explore, or have they revealed themselves over time?
I think they have revealed themselves over time. When I first started painting, I was more focused on exploring colour, materials and developing my own style. But as my practice grew, I began to notice recurring themes in my work.
Identity is something I find particularly interesting because I think we are constantly changing. Growing up in Sri Lanka and building a life in the UK has given me different perspectives on belonging, culture and how we see ourselves.
Womanhood, motherhood, personal growth and the different versions of ourselves we move through are also subjects that naturally find their way into my paintings. I don’t necessarily start with a message I want to communicate. Often, I understand what a painting means to me only once it is finished.
Your work moves between moments of strength, vulnerability and introspection. How much of your own life inevitably enters the paintings?
Quite a lot, I think, even when I’m not consciously trying to put it there. My experiences as a woman, a mother and someone who has moved between different cultures have all shaped the way I see the world.
There are moments in life when you feel strong and confident, and others when you feel uncertain or need time to find yourself again. I think all of those emotions exist in my paintings.
Painting has also become a way for me to process things that are sometimes difficult to put into words. I don’t always share the personal story behind a particular piece because I like leaving room for people to bring their own experiences to it. If someone looks at my painting and sees something completely different from what I intended, I think that’s a beautiful part of art.
You have worked on collaborations with brands and organisations including Sony Pictures UK, Audible UK, Xbox UK and Lloyds Bank. What do you enjoy about taking your practice into these very different contexts?
I really enjoy the opportunity to take my art outside the traditional gallery setting and introduce it to different audiences. Each collaboration brings a new challenge, and I love finding ways to translate my artistic style into something unexpected.
Whether it’s creating a portrait inspired by a film character, responding to a story or working with a brand’s identity, I enjoy finding that connection between their world and mine.
It’s also interesting to see how people respond to art in different environments. These collaborations have allowed me to reach audiences who might not necessarily visit an art gallery, and that’s something I really value.
At the same time, I see every collaboration as an opportunity to learn, experiment and grow as an artist.
When working on a commission or collaboration, how do you protect your own artistic identity while also responding to somebody else’s brief?
I think the key is finding a balance between understanding the brief and knowing what makes your work your own. I always take time to understand what a client or brand is looking for, but I also think it’s important to bring my own interpretation rather than simply reproduce an idea.
My use of colour, texture, layering and mixed media is quite distinctive, so even when I’m working within certain guidelines, those elements naturally come through.
I enjoy having creative freedom within a brief. I think the best collaborations happen when both sides trust each other and allow the artist to bring something unexpected to the table.
Your recent collections include titles such as Portraits in Motion, Somatic Maps and Bio-Luminescence. Do you tend to think in terms of individual paintings first, or do works naturally begin to form a wider body or collection?
I usually begin with individual paintings. I might have an idea, an emotion or a particular visual direction that I want to explore, but I don’t always know where it will lead.
As I create more work, I start noticing connections between the paintings. Sometimes it’s the colour palette, sometimes a recurring subject or a feeling that runs through them. That’s when I begin to see the possibility of a wider collection.
I enjoy working in collections because it allows me to explore an idea from different perspectives rather than trying to communicate everything through one painting. Each piece can stand on its own, but together they tell a bigger story.
Has there been a particular painting, exhibition or moment in your career when you felt something genuinely shifted for you as an artist?
There have been a few important moments, but having my first solo exhibition with Kaizen Fine Art was definitely one of them.
Preparing a body of work for a solo exhibition is a very different experience from creating individual paintings. It makes you look at your practice as a whole and think about the story you want to share with an audience.
Seeing the work together in a gallery, and having people come in, spend time with the paintings and connect with them in their own way, was incredibly rewarding. Meeting collectors and hearing what certain pieces meant to them was particularly special.
I started my journey as a self-taught artist, learning through experimentation and finding my own way, so moments like that remind me how far I’ve come. They also give me the confidence to keep pushing forward.
At this stage in your practice, what are you most interested in pushing further, whether technically, emotionally or in the scale and ambition of the work?
I’m interested in pushing all three. Technically, I want to continue exploring materials and surfaces, finding new ways to combine paint, fabric and texture. I’m always curious about what else I can introduce into my work without losing the qualities that make it mine.
Emotionally, I’d like to explore more complex and intimate subjects. I think there are so many layers to human relationships, identity and the way we experience life, and I want to give myself the freedom to explore those ideas more deeply.
I’m also interested in creating larger bodies of work and more ambitious collections, and taking my practice into new spaces internationally.
I don’t want to feel that I’ve arrived at one particular style and need to stay there. For me, being an artist is about constantly discovering, questioning and evolving. I hope my work continues to surprise even me.
For more information visit:
Website – Chayadesilva
Instagram – @chayadesilvaart
