Inoka Wimalaratne
Bio
A psychiatrist by profession, Dr Inoka Wimalaratne is a talented artist who strongly believes in the ‘healing powers’ of art and creativity. In 2005 she published a collection of short stories and poems titled ‘Life stories’ based on her work as a medical intern in Sri Lanka. She inherits artistic skills from her father, Mr B Wimalaratne, a renowned artist based in Colombo. These innate talents are later refined by her own learnings, life experiences and travels.
Dr Wimalaratne is also passionate about her cultural identity which is portrayed in her artwork. When she was living in New Zealand between 2007-2019 she contributed to various cultural events (stage decorations, costume designing, choreography, publications and illustrations etc) organised by the local Sri Lankan community using her artistic talents. In 2015 she showcased some of her paintings at the ‘Beauty of Sri Lanka’ art exhibition organised by the Sri Lanka Friendship Society (SLFS) in Hamilton, NZ.
Dr Wimalaratne creates abstract artwork using both oil and acrylic on canvas. Her creativity is inspired by her own experience as a psychiatrist working with people with mental illness in multicultural settings. She is a strong advocate for de stigmatising mental health and hopes she can convey a powerful message through her artistic interpretations. She is currently living in Melbourne, Australia and working at Monash Health and Monash University. She studied at Girls’ High School, Mount Lavinia and Visakha Vidyalaya, Colombo and graduated as a medical doctor from the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2002. She has completed her psychiatry specialist training in UK and New Zealand.
Dr Wimalaratne identifies her purpose in life as to be creative, kind and authentic in order to understand other peoples’ life stories, relieve their suffering and inspire positive changes in their lives through cognitive and emotional connections. She aspires to live in harmony with science, art and spirituality.