Red Bull Doodle Art takes local talent to a global stage

Sachintha Maweekumbura from Ranabima Royal College, Kandy wins local Red Bull Doodle Art competition to exhibit at global gallery in Cape Town.

Armed with pens and papers, Sri Lankan students and working individuals took to their notepads and put their artistic abilities to the test, competing for a chance to inspire the world with a doodle that could win them a global grand prize of being featured on exclusive Red Bull merchandise.

Sachintha's winning doodle

Red Bull Doodle Art is in its eighth successful year, inspiring creative talent from all around the world. The evolution of this unique competition has made massive impacts in local markets, driving Red Bull to put it on a global platform for the first time in 2014. The Sri Lankan edition drew to an exciting close Wednesday evening after Sachintha Maweekumbura from Ranabima Royal College, Kandy was declared the national winner after facing tough competition from a record 280 entries over two rounds of judging, making it Sri Lanka’s largest-ever doodle competition.

The first round of judging saw 20 finalists make the cut based on Facebook likes. The second round then exhibited these 20 doodles at the National Doodle Art Gallery set up at the Cinnamon Grand Atrium on Wednesday and was judged by an expert panel of industry professionals.

Carlos Anuncibay (Executive Creative Director) of Saatchi & Saatchi, joined by Julie Ross (Associate Professor)and Liz Fernando (Multimedia Lecturer) of Raffles Design Institute together with professional artist and illustrator, Thisath Thoradeniya brought a diverse range of insights and opinion to the judging table, debating the style and creativity of each doodle before naming Sachintha the national winner. Sachintha will now be travelling to Cape Town, South Africa between October 24th and 26th where his doodle will be showcased at the inaugural global gallery of winning doodles all aiming for the grand prize.

“As a country filled with so many talented artists, I’m thrilled to have my doodle selected as the national winner. Red Bull has done a fantastic job at inspiring local creativity and I will be proud to represent Sri Lankan talent in Cape Town next month.” Sachintha said.

To view the winning doodle and its worthy competitors from both Sri Lanka and abroad, visit http://www.redbulldoodleart.com.