Seemingly a visual celebration of indigenous culture as well as exploration of subconscious currents—“Yakkas: Everyday Exorcisms” by LA-based artist Shyama Golden (of Sri Lankan background) instantly amazes the viewer with its strong narrative style and unusual cast of characters.

The series of paintings features Sri Lankan folk dancers masked as Yakkas (devils or demons) who traditionally perform in colourful and often comedic exorcism rituals to remove unseen spirits causing physical and mental ailments.

The artist introduces the project: “In mundane American scenes from my own life, the Yakkas go about their daily lives and occasionally interact with people. The all-night ritual of Thovil (which could be described as a roast disguised as a ceremony in honor of the Yakkas) has more relevance today as tourist spectacle than for its intended purpose as an occult healing ritual, but I’m interested in the purpose they once served for communities who embraced them since pre-Buddhist times on the island. The original symbolism of the Yakkas is also used in scenes where I combine self portraiture with Yakkas who act out my own inner conflicts.”

The work is intended to appear theatrical, reflecting on an awareness of the social performance necessitated by our relationships with each other and the drama of everyday life.​

Shyama started oil painting at the age of 12. After getting a BFA in graphic design, she spent a decade as a designer and illustrator, during which she exhibited her paintings sporadically. Since 2020, she has been into painting full-time. In recent years, she has been a guest speaker at NYU, RIT, Texas Tech University and MICA and on the jury for The One Club for Creativity: Young Guns.

​The artist’s work has been featured on covers for The New York Times, LA Times, and Netflix Queue as well as various book covers such as Shruti Swamy’s Archer, Fatimah Asghar’s If They Come for Us,  Akweke Emezi’s PET and BITTER and in films such as LITTLE, Fletch and Boxing Day. Her paintings have been exhibited at The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Sri Lanka, Jeffrey Deitch Gallery NYC and LA, Micki Meng Gallery in SF, Swivel Gallery in Brooklyn NY, and Trotter & Sholer in NYC.​

Links: Website (www.shyamagolden.com) | Instagram (www.instagram.com/shyamagolden)

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