The D’Aguilar Art Foundation is proud to debut Delton Barrett, an emerging photographer based in Nassau, The Bahamas. Barrett, born to Jamaican parents, grew up near the ocean and woods in South New Providence. His interest in photography began with capturing his landscape and experimenting with editing; eventually, this grew into a business in which he exercises his talent in finding innovated ways to tell photographic stories. This exhibition entitled NURTURE is Barrett’s first solo show featuring his experimental photography.

NAGB responds to British Council decision

Over a year ago, the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas (NAGB), entered into a formal agreement with the British Council to craft the final iteration of the “Difficult Conversations” series of exhibitions, public conversations and student mentorships, reflecting on the UK’s involvement in the transatlantic slave trade throughout the Caribbean. The NAGB produced, in collaboration with the British Council, “We Suffer to Remain,” a group exhibition that supported the works of John Beadle, Graham Fagen, Sonia Farmer and Anina Major, and a series of public programmes—artists talks, public lectures and film screenings—that spoke in expansive ways about Blackness, ownership, the vestiges, trauma and the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade and the implications of the empire in relation to its colonies.

As a developing postcolonial institution, we work to ensure a healthy space for dialogue, problem-solving and the emergence of creative solutions. For this exhibition, we were given a chance to flex our institutional capacity by developing engaging talks, panels, public lectures and a critical partnership, supported by the British Council, with LUX Scotland to develop a 4-part film series, which provoked a rich and vibrant local discourse. Alongside that, we worked collaboratively to develop an exhibition catalogue, which was initially planned only as an epublication; texts were commissioned by local and international scholars and edited by the British Council review committee. [...]

CLICK HERE for full article in the Nassau Guardian.

Independence, Culture, Identity: Power, Neglect and Disrespect

by Nicolette Bethel, PhD

The Punchline
I’ll tell you a sick joke. All my adult life, I’ve been a taxpayer and a law-abiding citizen, and all my adult life, the things that mean the most to me—knowledge, intellectual curiosity, and creative endeavour—have had no place in the society our politicians have assembled.

A year and a half ago, I had a personal encounter that promised something different. I ran into the man who is now the Prime Minister, and he announced, as his manifesto did before that moment and as his maiden speech did after, that a Bahamian government would at long last take our culture seriously enough to give it an agency of its own. A stand-alone ministry, he promised. My response? I laughed. I’ve heard it all before.

Baha Mar’s ‘Fairwind’ Exhibition

Largest Bahamian art exhibition set to open at Baha Mar.

The Fairwind exhibition, a permanent showcase of more than 250 works of art from both prominent and up-and-coming artists, representing over 150 years of Bahamian art, is set to open at the Baha Mar Performing Arts and Convention Center on Independence Day.

The exhibition documents the ideologies and beliefs of The Bahamas from the early culture of the 1800s to the contemporary practices of today.

Designed and curated by The Current at Baha Mar, the exhibition is the largest collection of original Caribbean art at a resort anywhere in the world, as well as the single largest collection of Bahamian art ever exhibited.

Bahamian journalist wins 4 out of 10 press awards in 2018 Georgia Press Association contest

by admin

Bahamian journalist Arthia Nixon was the only staff member of the Newspapers of West Georgia – including Times-Georgian, Villa Rican and Douglas County Sentinal — to win multiple awards in this year’s Georgia Press Association Better Newspaper Contest.

Nixon, who began her media career 18 years ago in her native Bahamas, won both first-place and third-place awards for Religious Writing, standing out with her wide range of topics, including a piece on church no longer being a safe haven due to mass shootings in the United States.

For her second place win in Investigative Journalism, judges said she proved why it was important to attend local government work session with her series on the Carrollton Fire Department. As a result of her series, the public went to bat for their “underpaid and overworked” firemen, resulting in a full audit of the department. Nixon was also commended for her depth and diverse topics which earned her third place overall in Business Reporting. [...]

CLICK HERE for full article at The Bahamas Chronicle.

Former Bahamas art teacher in new California show

British-born artist Dave Smith (b.1944) lived in The Bahamas from 1973–1990 having taken part in frequent group exhibitions in Nassau & Miami, FL. He is one of the principal artists featured in 2008 documentary “Master Artists of The Bahamas”. Smith moved to U.S in 1991 and is currently living in Los Angeles, CA. Much of his work comments on contemporary American society, but frequently draws on Caribbean experience.

Smith will take part in the new exhibition Little Britain opening July 6 and running through July 28, 2018. It features the work of 16 British artists living in California, including both David Hockney and Derek Boshier who were both part a group of exceptionally talented artists that graduated in 1962 from the Royal College of Art in London, and along with Allen Jones, R.B. Kitaj and others, became prominent in the British Pop Art movement.

Dave Smith is another artist in the show with a long association with Derek Boshier dating back to the 1960’s when Smith was a Post Graduate student at Hornsey College of Art in London, and Boshier was a visiting lecturer. When Smith subsequently moved to The Bahamas in 1973, he took up an art teaching position and he developed his own version of pop-tinged realism focusing on the many ironies and paradoxes of contemporary Bahamian life.

Smith, who left The Bahamas for California in 1990, held seven influential solo shows during his time in Nassau, as well as participating in numerous group shows with his contemporaries Brent Malone, Max Taylor, Stanley Burnside, Jackson Burnside, as well as Amos Ferguson and Antonius Roberts. He has returned to The Bahamas on many occasions over the years, participating in several shows including 4 solo shows, the last one at the D’Aguilar Art Foundation in 2015.

The painting he is showing in the current Little Britain show is one of a series of paintings in which he has incorporated his own sepia-painted facsimiles of Edward Curtis’ early 20th. century photographs of Native American environments, against which e’s juxtaposed images of American popular culture, chosen for either their ironic or formal associations – sometimes both – offering poignant commentary on contemporary American society.

CLICK HERE to visit Dave Smith’s website.

Artist in the Spotlight

Saskia D’Aguilar

by Cacique International

Welcome back to Cacique’s Artist in the Spotlight series – a journey into a thriving Bahamian art scene and a look at some of our most exciting artists, pushing boundaries on island and around the world. In this episode, we sit down with Saskia D’Aguilar, the visionary director of The D’Aguilar Art Foundation (DAF) to talk about the inspiration behind the foundation and its role in shaping the new wave of Bahamian art.

For those of you who may have not had the pleasure of meeting Saskia D’aguilar in or around the inspiring landscape of the Bahamian art scene; she is the daughter-in-law of Vincent D’Aguilar – one of the first & greatest patrons of Bahamian art. It was her father-in-law’s appreciation for Bahamian art that led her to developing the D’Aguilar Art Foundation (DAF) into the perfect catalyst for Bahamian Art that it is today.

CACIQUE: What is your goal as director of the DAF?
Saskia: My main mission is to help advocate, catalogue, and promote Bahamian art throughout the world. Exposure of Bahamian artists both locally and internationally is key to increasing the level of appreciation for Bahamian art. The preservation of Bahamian art is pivotal in building the nation as a leading cultural mecca in the Caribbean region. So much beauty lies in these lands, it would be a shame if it wasn't safeguarded! I’m honoured to be at the forefront of a progressive creative culture – it brings me joy. [...]

CLICK HERE for full interview at Cacique International’s website.

Remilda Rose Designs: Confidently Chic

by Hadassah Hall

When a Gillian Curry-Williams’ client steps out, she steps out confidently chic.

As the designer and owner of Remilda Rose Designs, Gillian creates high quality garments from vintage to edgy. Her fashion house has become known for its embellishment of garments from hand beading and splashes of crystals to luxurious fabrics and rich colours.

Gillian produces stunning, sleek creations that are impeccably crafted to flatter a woman’s body. Each fabric is cut with surgical precision and meticulously stitched to produce head turning designs.

“When you go out there, you’re representing me,” said Gillian.

In fact, Gillian has a one-on-one relationship with each client, working closely with the individual to customize a design that by the time it is finished, the client totally owns it.

And as for her clients, some of whom are from over the hill, Gillian said, “I don’t look at where a person comes from. I look at the heart.” [...]

CLICK HERE for full article at Over-the-Hill 242.

Giveton Gelin’s music is the pride of The Bahamas

A name to remember for Jazz fans.

by Relly Hunt

Giving to others is often said to bring back double the blessings, something that a community in The Bahamas learned first hand. Giveton Gelin’s first trumpet was handed to him by his father, who received the horn back after lending it out years ago. What followed was a spark of inspiration, leading to Gelin’s infatuation with Jazz music and an unwavering pursuit of the art form itself. His talent brought him to the states, where he has become a standout, and played with some heavy hitters like Wynton Marsalis and Lou Rainone. These days, Gelin is focused on his very own quintet. We reached out to him to hear more about his story and he was kind enough to share.

1. I read that you discovered Jazz when your teacher played The Three Trumpeters. Can you walk us through how inspired that moment made you feel?
GIVETON: Yes. My music teacher played for the class “The Three Trumpeteers” from Nicholas Payton’s album “Payton’s Place” in the 7th Grade. I can remember this moment like it was yesterday. The conventional playing of trumpet in The Bahamas (where I’m from), was either Marching Band or Junkanoo music. (Junkanoo is our “Boxing, Day” and New Year’s street parade, which consists of huge groups of musicians, dancers, displaying their beautiful costumes. It’s similar to The New Orleans Mardi Gras).

When he played this recording, It was the first time I have ever heard trumpet played at such a high level. It was then I realized that there was more to the trumpet. I was so inspired by what I heard, I took down the names of all three trumpeters: Nicholas Payton, Roy Hargrove and Wynton Marsalis. I immediately went home and began researching these jazz giants who had inspired me so greatly. This was the beginning of my jazz trumpet journey. [...]

CLICK HERE for full interview at Gritty Vibes.

On our memorial gaps

Review of new exhibition, “Hard Mouth: From the Tongue of the Ocean”.

by Ian Bethell-Bennett, PhD

Hard mout’, rudeness is no good for negroes.

We are taught to be seen but not heard… Negro tongues must remain silent in mouths with teeth that shine too brightly, as so many grotesque renderings capture from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Hard mout’ cause plenty trouble, one could be whipped, raped, drawn and quartered, have pepper rubbed in one’s wounds with a little salt for good measure for disrespecting orders. Meaning swims along in a silenced economy of subservience to the Yankee dollar, that during Prohibition led tourism boom in the then-colony. Yet, even as the new Permanent Exhibition at the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas (NAGB), “Hard Mouth: From the Tongue of the Ocean” opens, it is as essential today to deconstruct those old and troubling imposed and self-imposed images of negro minstrelsy, mamminess and Uncle Tom that continue to circulate today as days gone by.

Much of the language, visual and verbal has been used to pin down the people, landscape and the spatial cadences in unkind and inferior ways. As we tour the exhibition, these conversations between artists and their works, influences and reveals nuances and a subtle a subtext that bubbled to the surface in the second decade of the twenty first century in shocking ways. The tones, shades, rhythms and edges may blend in some points, but they grate, grind and clash in others, as self-determination and mastery buck up into resistance.

“Hard Mouth: From the Tongue of the Ocean” brings together works to tell stories that have largely been forgotten. For this first exploration, I wanted to walk through the tourist’s eye on The Bahamas, especially as this relates to a recent letter to the Guardian’s Editor about the failure of the country and its African-ness; a term used with great derision, and if we were not also so anti-Black we might see differently, though it echoes historical pronouncements that we are a: “third class British colony.” Race seems to be at the base of the discussions around national failure, especially “The Ghost of Junkanoo Future” and Henry Stark, who saw Emancipation as a mistake. Yet, we suffer to remain, and the slings continue to shoot arrows at us, as we are muted, edited and sidelined in subtle and not so subtle ways. [...]

CLICK HERE for full article at The Nassau Guardian.