She is the proud owner of the first Sri Lankan Art and Cultural Museum outside Sri Lanka, situated at Bay Street, Staten Island, New York.
Just 18 years old, Julia Wijesinghe who recently graduated from High School has much passion and knowledge of Sri Lanka and her culture. Born and raised in the U.S, Julia nurtured a dream to start a museum when she was 15. She says, together with her parents she has been collecting antiques/exhibits for her museum for over three years. “We visit Sri Lanka every year, and during that time we collected them to take to New York. I read many books to get to know about everything that we have in the museum, and still do,” says Julia.
She says, her museum was a gift for her 18th Birthday from her parents. Opened on March 27, 2017, the museum represents every religion and culture of all the ethnic groups in Sri Lanka. She says, she was always fascinated by the uniqueness of different cultures. “I am learning Bharathanatyam. With that I read a lot about Hinduism as well. I have always believed in unity, and I know a lot about other religions as well.”
Explaining the types of exhibits she has in the museum, Julia says, that it has everything from old kitchen utensils, to statues, to masks, to historical antiques which represent the rich cultural heritage of Sri Lanka. “In my museum we describe step by step, how batik is made. A lot of people find the process amusing. I wanted to include that in the museum because I thought others should know how it is done since it is quite unique.”
She claims that her parents, Lakruwana Wijesinghe and Jayantha Wijesinghe were one of the first to start a Sri Lankan restaurant in New York. Their influence helped Julia to take an interest in Lankan culture. “My father is obsessed with antiques and whenever we come here we would go somewhere new. I always look forward to come to Sri Lanka and collect more items for my museum. My mom is the main chef in our restaurant, Lakruwana, which is on the first floor of the building, and my museum is on the second floor. Anyone who comes there gets a complete Sri Lankan experience, including the delicious cuisine and then the culture and history, from the museum,” she says.
Young Julia’s goal is to show the world about Sri Lanka’s rich heritage. “Its uniqueness is what I wish to highlight. There is one thing in Sri Lanka that no other country has. We may be a small country on the map, but our culture and history are diverse and fascinating,” she says. The Art and Cultural Museum, NY is open only on weekends since Julia is still studying. She says, she prefers to explain the history behind the exhibits in Sinhalese if the visitors are Sri Lankan. “I love to talk to them and share experiences. Sometimes they tell me details that I do not know. But, there are instances when my knowledge is tested by some,” chuckles Julia.
Although she is so much into history, Julia says, she is a computer geek as well. “I love computer stuff, and am obsessed with it. I am obsessed with history too, although they are two different things. Once I start College I am planning to study computer science.”
Place
Julia wishes to move the museum to a new place so that it can have its own landmark. However, she says, she is working towards it step by step.
“Now I have enough room to put everything. But, I hope to move to my own place, and to have more space. I will have more indoor plants in my museum. In New York it is just buildings, so I want my guests to have a different experience when they visit it, a place where they could feel calm and close to nature.”
She says, since the day she dreamt of having a museum she read a lot of books and got herself familiar with the history and culture of Sri Lanka, and is yet in the process of learning, “It has been a good learning experience for me because when you explain things to other people, I learn from them too. Over the years I have learnt so much and am delighted that I took the decision to open a museum in New York,” she says.
Overwhelmed by the response she got from people all over the world, Julia reiterated the fact that she is truly touched and was amazed at the same time.
Heritage
“I always wanted to do something for the country. A lot of people tend to forget their homeland once they leave the country. As a kid, it hit me that not a lot of people know about Sri Lanka, so I wanted to take our culture and heritage to the world. I believe New York is the best place to do that because it is diverse.”
Thanking her parents for the immense support given throughout, Julia says, if not for them her dream would have remained a dream. This is probably the only museum in New York, run with one’s own cash. We built it with my parents and my savings. This is just a start, I do not know where it will end. I’m hoping for a big end, so that everyone will know where Sri Lanka is; that is my goal.”