Leela Bandaranaike Peries (1939) lives and works in Sri Lanka. She is a sculptor who is completely involved in her craft and thus, she oversees and controls the bronzing process, from start to finish. She, in fact, has a special kiln built on her premises for the firing of each batch of works. Consequently, her works are produced slowly, selectively and with great care.

She received her formal art training with Mrs. Cora Abrahams in Colombo and at the Camberwell School of Art in London where she studied for two years (1959 – 1961) under Dr. K. Vogel. She writes:

“Dr. Karl Vogel was a great admirer of the ancient Greeks and taught us to recognise the beauty of form. He said that in a composition of figures it was important to watch the spaces created by the composition. The spaces would help to enhance the beauty of the composition.”

The influence of Vogel’s teachings is evident in her work, where spaces work symbiotically with forms to create a delicate and elegant balance in the final products.

Peries’ works are predominantly figurative and she has done numerous special commissions for larger than life works for local institutions, including universities, churches and schools and private commissions for international collections. She has executed portraits of President J.R. Jayawardena, for the Sri Lankan Presidential Collection and of President R. Premadasa for St. Joseph's College, Sri Lanka.

Her work is exhibited through The Private Gallery and was shown during Asian Art Week (March/April 2006) in New York in the exhibition, Serendipity in New York.