WHAT’S ON AT THE GEOFFREY BAWA TRUST THIS FESTIVE SEASON

COLOMBO, November 12th, 2025: As the year’s end draws near, programming has never been busier at The Geoffrey Bawa Trust. From its home base at the Bawa Space on Horton Place in Colombo 07, the Trust is offering up a range of events in the coming weeks, from the latest in its Thai Architects Programme to the much-anticipated Open House Colombo weekend. There’s also the annual Design Market and the monthly Ways of Knowing curatorial exhibition tour. All of the events listed below can be found on the Trust’s website: geoffreybawa.com/events

Join the Trust at Siam Nivassa on November 27th at 6:30 pm to hear renowned LA-based architect Kulapat Yantrasast discuss the role of architecture and museum design in cultural placemaking in the 21st century. This is the second lecture in the Thai Architects Programme, a three-part initiative by the Royal Thai Embassy and Geoffrey Bawa Trust to promote architectural awareness and knowledge sharing. Museums are critical public spaces for community building and social engagement, and Yantrasast has acquired a reputation as one of the art world’s preeminent architects, designing genre-defying spaces with a focus on the human impact of the arts. This event is a unique opportunity to hear from a global leader in contemporary architecture practice and museum design.

The public also has the opportunity to engage with Yantrasast on November 28th at 4 pm for a workshop on the role and place of contemporary architecture in museum design. Yantrasast will guide participants through a holistic design approach to working with these important cultural centres, creating places that balance institutional histories with their future potential, and consider the surrounding environment and diverse audiences.

Celebrate the city’s vibrant creative population at Open House Colombo over the weekend of December 5-7. This year’s theme, Makers’ Spaces and Other Places, invites visitors to step into a range of architectural firms, artists’ studios, and home-based practices rarely open to the public. Hosted by the Trust, the festival offers two exciting days of behind-the-scenes tours and special activities. Participants will gain insight into artistic and design processes, from archival practices to contemporary architecture and local craftsmanship.

Also on December 7th is the Trust’s annual December Design Market. Kick off the festive season at the De Saram House by exploring a curated mix of local brands that support Sri Lankan artisans and their communities.

Listen to architectural and urban historian Pamudu Tennakoon explain the histories of some of Colombo’s colonial fragments on December 11th at 6:30 pm. In this lecture, Tennakoon will explore the De Soysa building, a recently demolished shophouse complex in the neighbourhood of Kompagngna Veediya. By examining the multiple historical narratives of this building (which now exists as rubble), this talk questions how people continue to occupy and relate to the material remnants of their colonial pasts.

Finally, the Trust is now hosting Sunday morning curatorial tours of the Ways of Knowing exhibition at the Bawa Space. The next tour will be held on December 14th at 11:00 am. On view through February 2026, Ways of Knowing uses different sensory experiences and mediums, including virtual reality, film, textiles, oral traditions, maps, seeds, and our own bodies, to examine the different forms knowledge can take.

Ways of Knowing is supported by a generous grant from the British Council as well as Kohler India, Initiating Partner for the Geoffrey Bawa Trust’s Exhibition Programme.

The Bawa Space welcomes all visitors and aims to be accessible to everyone. For more information on visiting us, you can read or listen to our guides on Previsit information for the Geoffrey Bawa Space and the What to Expect at the Ways of Knowing Exhibition.