Dr. Priyantha Udagedara (b. 1975, Kandy, Sri Lanka) was born and raised in Sri Lanka and left the island to study in the United Kingdom in 2007, where he currently lives and works. He received his BFA from the University of Kelaniya (2003), MA in Contemporary Fine Art Practise, Leeds Metropolitan University (2007) and PhD from Leeds Metropolitan University (2013). Udagedara’s series of work on paper and canvas play with the concepts of beauty and agony in the island; a strong political concept he carried through to an exhibition of Sri Lankan art he was recently invited to curate at Leeds Metropolitan University. Selected solo exhibitions include Lace Market Gallery Nottingham (2013), Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds (2012), Paradise Road Galleries, Colombo (2010) and Barefoot Galleries, Colombo (2004).