Hailing from Hatfield is a prodigy in the making; three year-old Richel Siriwardena is painting her way to fame.
Born to Sri Lankan parents Malika Dona and Ruchira Siriwardena, Richel is the definition of a miracle child, having been conceived after Malika and Ruchira tried for 10 years and almost gave up hope of having a child naturally.
Furthermore, it seems that during her remarkable birth, Richel was also blessed with the incredible gift of artistic flair.
I sat down to conduct an interview with Richel and her mother Malika.
Malika began by telling me that since Richel began painting at one years old, she has created over 110 works to date (an incredible feat achieved for someone still so young and untrained).
Her numerous pieces decorate her living room and are compiled in several giant-sized portfolios, showing her gradual improvement and evolution in style; her entire home is a vibrant art exhibition of its own!
The fact that she has also mastered the ability to clean up after herself, thereby leaving her workspace clean and tidy after completing each art piece, is a miracle by itself for a three year old child!
Many psychologists preach about the significant benefits of infants engaging in artistic activities, from enhancing their creative mindset, developing their fine motor skills and dexterity, to preserving their inventive way of thinking and problem solving skills.
The infant brain makes more than one million neural connections per second, which is why art serves as a wonderful hobby to stimulate the senses and keep their imagination expanding.
And indeed, Richel is a testament to the marvelous potential an infant can reach when provided with the support and tools to expand their imagination.
At only three years of age, Richel has developed such a strong eye for identifying colours to the extent that she can see any picture and know which primary colours to mix together in order to copy or match the desired colour in the painting.
This has sharpened her focus and made her a very good observational painter, even at such a tender age.
According to her mother Malika, even though Richel has some relatives who creatively express themselves through music, none have pursued art as a hobby.
Therefore, it came as a complete shock to her parents when their infant daughter, at a little over one years old, would spend long periods of time mixing primary colours and making patterns with her fingers, completely entranced by the hues and textures of the paints.
As she grew older and was supplied with more materials to foster her newfound innovative spirit, she became a more observant artist; drawing inspiration from books, TV programmes, the natural environment around her (like the trees, butterflies, flowers and clouds she encountered in her daily life) and the styles of other artists she would watch on social media.
Richel’s parents know she is definitely a gifted child and they support and encourage her to follow her dreams, whether it leads her to a professional career in art or not.
They have a very strong Christian faith and believe that all gifts received from the benevolence of God are very good, so whatever she chooses to do in life whether it is in the arts sector or not, will be good for her.
However, one thing Malika hopes her daughter does in the future is help make an impact on the world, preferably through uplifting children who possess similar talents to her but don’t have the funds or guidance to build on them.
In order to teach her this important principle, Malika and Ruchira donate a portion of the money made from Richel’s art sales (as well as other art supplies like canvases, brushes etc.) to charitable organisations and their local church.
Richel’s art has also caught the attention of people outside her family and she has already been provided with some opportunities to showcase her talent to the public, which is a great starting point for her exposure and networking.
Last month, she exhibited some of her paintings at The 2024 Hertsmere Diversity Festival (managing to sell two) and next year, she has been selected to present her work at the Untitled Art Fair in Chelsea, one of the UK’s largest artist-run festivals.
Richel’s parents ensure that they record her while she paints.
The videos document the entire process of how she creates her art pieces, from beginning to end, as evidence that she is solely responsible for the excellent results.
These videos are posted on Richel’s various social media platforms, which I will link below.
Please go and support Richel and her family, so that this child prodigy can gain more recognition for her craft.
I wish Richel the very best in all her future endeavours.
Email: rmsiriwardena@gmail.com
Facebook: Richel Siriwardena
Instagram: @richelsiriwardena
TikTok: @richel.siriwarden
YouTube: Richel’s Arts
Website: richelsiriwardena.art
WhatsApp: Richel’s Arts
