Visual Analysis
- Year
- 2025
- Course
- DES 322
- Location
- Jaffna, Sri Lanka
- Program
- Visual and historical analysis
This visual analysis investigates the Jaffna Public Library as a symbol of Tamil cultural erasure and the complex politics of reconstruction. Through a series of boards, the study contextualizes the conflict, documents the 1981 burning, and critiques the subsequent 'reconstruction without reflection.' By reading the library's physical changes against the historical narrative of the Sri Lankan Civil War, the work exposes how architecture can be used as both a weapon of cultural violation and a tool for whitewashing history.
Contextualizing the conflict
Mapping areas of conflict and significant cities during the Sri Lankan Civil War (1983-2009).
Jaffna Library burning 1981
Documenting the destruction of memory through the burning of the library's collection and the targeting of cultural symbols.
Reconstruction without reflection
Analyzing the second restoration and the critiques of failure to consult locals in the process.
- Year
- 2025
- Course
- DES 322
- Location
- Jaffna, Sri Lanka
- Program
- Visual and historical analysis
- Tools
- Research, Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign
- Collaborators
- Individual work