Deraniyagala was a founder member of the Colombo '43 Group of Sri Lankan artists and along with Lionel Wendt, George Keyt and Harold Peiris.
He was elected vice president of the Ceylon National Committee of International Association of Art.
One of his notable paintings was The Blue Nude of the American-born French entertainer Josephine Baker.
In 1943, he with like-minded artists formed the Colombo '43 Group, and had his paintings on display in London and Venice in the 1950s.
He died on 24 May 1967, aged 64 at his family home, Nugedola Wallauwa in Pasyala in the Gampaha District.