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On 9th April 2021, after months of gently effusive eruptions, the La Soufriere volcano in St. Vincent began erupting explosively and Barbados found itself blanketed in volcanic ash that painted everything in slate grey, and we were reminded that nature is also an artist. Colour psychology tells us that grey is a neutral colour representing a balance between black and white; that it is calm and quiet, and associated with feelings of boredom, sadness, depression, gloom and loss. However, the month of April 2021 has taught us that grey can be far from calm, quiet or dull. The past few weeks have taught Jill McIntyre us that grey can, in fact, be rather infuriating and frustrating. Newsletter Editor I have a very special love in my heart for the islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and for Vincy people. My great-grandmother was a Vincentian Carib who found her way from St. Vincent to Barbados after the La Soufriere eruption of 1902. She met a Bajan man here and together they started a family. Many years later, the serendipity of life led me to live in St. Vincent for 15 years where I raised my sons and enjoyed hiking through the verdant rain forests, discovering gorgeous waterfalls, swimming in rivers, climbing to the crater of La Soufriere herself twice, and of course, sailing through the beautiful Grenadine waters. St. Vincent and the Grenadines are 32 picturesque, colourful islands and cays, but since April 9th this year, the mainland has been painted mostly grey. Nature exploded with a colour that one seldom appreciates as beautiful, yet, many of the recent photos that captured the eruption of the grey ash plumes from La Soufriere were powerfully arresting and emotionally compelling images. There was something terrifyingly beautiful in the explosive Art of Nature, as can be seen in the photo at right by Vincentian photographer Kemron Bacchus. Clearly, grey is not always calm and dull. There have been five recorded explosive volcanic eruptions in St. Vincent, during the years 1718, 1812, 1902, 1979 and now 2021. Thanks to the advance of technology, we have photographic evidence of the 1979 and 2021 events, but we must depend on various written accounts and the imaginations of artists for depictions of the previous eruptions. Right: La Soufriere eruption in St. Vincent on 9th April 2021. Photo by Kemron Bacchus Instagram: kemronbacchus
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J.M.W. Turner RA, (aka William Turner), was an English Romantic painter noted for his expressive landscapes and turbulent, often violent marine paintings. Turner painted the scene at the right in his studio, inspired by a sketch drawn by Hugh Perry Keane, Esq. who was a barrister, sugar plantation and slave owner on St. Vincent during the 1812 eruption. Mount Vesuvius in southern Italy is another volcano which has inspired many artists to depict its several eruptions over the years. Above: "The Eruption of the Soufrière Mountains in the Island of St Vincent, 30 April 1812" by J.M.W. Turner (1775–1851). Painting Below left, is a painting by currently at Victoria Gallery & Museum, University of Liverpool Joseph Wright, portraying his idea of Vesuvius' 1774 eruption. The explosive Art of Nature not only inspires artists to illustrate the magnificence of actual eruptions, it can also influence works expressing the overwhelming human emotion brought about by destructive forces of nature. In May 1883, one of the deadliest volcanic eruptions in modern history occurred on the island of Krakatoa in Indonesia. The catastrophic explosion was heard up to 3000 miles away and the effects were said to be worldwide. Theories abound that Edvard Munch's painting "The Scream" was inspired by his reaction to the optical effects of dust and gases in the atmosphere from the volcanic explosion which resulted in strangely frightening, prolonged red sunsets as far away as Oslo, Norway. Munch wrote in his journal, "I was walking down the road with two friends when the sun set; suddenly, the sky turned as red as blood. I stopped and leaned against the fence... shivering with fear. Then I heard the enormous, infinite scream of nature." What an explosive scream she has!
"Eruption of Vesuvius from Portici" 1774, by Joseph Wright of Derby, Huntington Library, San Marino California, USA
"The Scream" by Edvard Munch 1893, The National Gallery, Oslo, Norway
FEBRUARY - APRIL 2021
Roslyn Worme, better known as Roz Worme, is a Barbadian artist who has been painting for over 20 years. She was a member of the group called the Newcomers Art Group and attended art classes every week for many years with this group, which was started in the home of artist Indrani Whittingham. Through this group, Roz participated in many Newcomers Art Group Shows and was awarded a prize by Indrani for the Best Newcomer in 2001. In her early days of painting, she used the oil medium but after being exposed to the acrylic medium, this became her new-found passion. More recently, she started combining acrylic inks with her acrylic paints. For her, the colour palate of the Caribbean and especially her homeland, Barbados, offers a wide selection of flora, fauna, scenery and people to capture on canvas. One of her favourite subjects to paint is flowers, especially from the Caribbean. Her art is essentially driven by the ‘colours of the Caribbean’ and she has been commissioned to do a number of pieces over the years. She has been a member of the Barbados Arts Council (BAC) for many years and shows her art at the BAC Art Gallery in Pelican Craft Centre in
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Roz Worme, Visual Artist & Jewellery Designer
Bridgetown, whenever there is an opportunity for her to do so. Over the years, she has attended courses offered by well-known artists – Heidi Berger and Ariel Lyons. While attending one of these courses, she fell in love with the negative painting technique and uses this in many of her current pieces. Loving ‘all things creative’, Roz Worme tried her hand at making jewellery over 15 years ago and there has been no stopping her since. This ‘love’, which began
All artwork on this page by Roz Worme /cont'd...
FEBRUARY - APRIL 2021
as a hobby on a small scale has evolved into the now well-known Roz Worme Creations. Today Roz Worme Creations has both a Facebook page and Instagram account where she shares photographs of every piece she creates. More recently, she created a new jewellery line, Mystique, which has its own Instagram account. Some of her Roz Worme Creation pieces are offered for sale at My Collection Barbados, Hastings, Christ Church while Encore Boutique, Worthing, Christ Church stocks a small collection of her Mystique line. While Roz Worme Creations offers more colourful, chunky jewellery, Mystique carries more delicate pieces made of gold-filled and sterling silver chain and findings, mixed with pearls and semi-precious gemstones.The beauty of the Mystique line is found in the layering of these pieces, two, three or four at a time. One of the areas she finds most challenging, yet most satisfying, is creating custom pieces for clients – from bridal pieces to fashion pieces to wear with a special outfit. As a jewellery designer, the designing of a custom piece of jewellery that may capture the essence of someone’s character, or the creation of a colourful piece to wear to a special event, is immensely satisfying. Again, her Roz Worme Creations line portrays the ‘colours of the Caribbean’. Some of these vibrant Caribbean colours, however, even sneak into some of her Mystique pieces.
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All jewellery on this page by Roz Worme Creations /cont'd...
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While her main client base is in Barbados, Roz Worme has clients in other parts of the Caribbean, the U.S.A. and in Canada, with some of her pieces reaching their homes as far away as Vancouver, Canada. On this page are more photos of Roz Worme's paintings and jewellery.
FEBRUARY - APRIL 2021
The artist Fielding Babb is legendary as an instrumental player in the story of the growth of Barbados’ Visual Arts. He painted as a water colourist in the 1970s and switched to acrylics, oils and palette knife by the 1980s. He was known for paintings that celebrated Barbadiana… familiar scenes of traditional Bajan life, with a special love for architecture and chattel houses in particular. Of his subject matter, Fielding explained, “I paint old houses – the historical buildings of the country, and buildings that are wasting away. In other words, I document Barbados’ past for future generations. I want to keep old Barbados alive through my art.”
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Visual Artist, Fielding Babb Born in 1935, Fielding left this earth in 2017. He is greatly missed by all who were privileged to know him. However, his spirit lives on in his art and we are very grateful to
Neville Legall for allowing us access to his collection of photos of Fielding’s work, so that we could give you this little reminder of the greatness of Fielding Babb. Do enjoy!
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All artworks on this page, as well as the two previous pages, are by the incomparable Fielding Babb, legendary Barbadian Visual Artist - a friend and mentor to many younger artists.
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Local large format printing company, SignUp Inc. will be launching a vibrant new website in July which will provide a new revenue stream for local artists and photographers. The website, CaribbeanArtExpress.com, is a designated e-commerce platform for Caribbean artists and photographers to showcase their powerfully diverse range of work. Visitors to the site can browse the selection of artwork and order high quality prints, either on canvas or Picasso Poster Paper, in varying sizes and have them shipped to just about anywhere in the world.
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Company director, Derek Wilkie says, “Our aim is to provide a much-needed outlet for local artists and photographers to reach a wider audience, especially in these challenging times, and to monetize their work by opening up a whole new revenue stream”. Stay tuned for further information on the website launch date and be sure to follow Caribbean Art Express on their social media platforms to learn more about how Barbados Arts Council members can be featured on the website.
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Exciting news... the BAC will be hosting a Mega Art Sale for one day only on Saturday, 29th May 2021 at the BAC Art Gallery in the Pelican Craft Centre in Bridgetown. The Sale runs from 8:00 am until 4:00 pm and all artworks will be offered at amazingly affordable, minimal prices. Each artwork will be priced at $500 or less. This is not a curated exhibition. This is a fun sales event for Bargain Hunters and Art Collectors. It is actually an unusual event for the BAC; we felt that in these harsh economic times, it was important to do something special to encourage members of our local population to own a unique piece of original local art. If you enjoy browsing estate sales and leaving-theisland types of sales, you will definitely enjoy looking through the artworks in the sale and discovering that special piece that resonates with you, that you need to own. Please note that all Government health and safety protocols regarding Covid-19 will be in effect. Take advantage of this amazing opportunity to start or expand your art collection!
So What's an NFT?
An NFT (non-fungible token) is a piece of artwork stamped with a unique string of code and stored on a virtual ledger called a blockchain. Every non-fungible token is unique and not interchangeable. Fanned by viral marketing and perhaps some pandemic ennui, interest in the NFT market has exploded, driving up the price of digital artworks to fantastical levels. Be aware that making these digital artworks requires colossal amounts of computing power, and that means greenhouse gases. Their environmental footprint is staggering. In the context of art, NFTs are the digital certification of ownership of a work of art and other collectibles; they provide unique and clear proof of ownership and authorship by the artist, since the minting artist (the creator) is always listed as the original owner of the digital artwork linked to the NFT. One benefit of selling digital art through blockchain technology, as opposed to more “traditional” art market transactions, is the automated resale royalties trickling back to the artist. However, the automated resale royalty may only work when the NFT is resold through the same platform. Artists should be aware that an NFT purchaser does not get the right to reproduce the underlying work, unless there is an express written agreement between the artist and the buyer. However, through its Terms & Conditions, the NFT platform may give itself a non-exclusive, worldwide, assignable, sub-licensable, perpetual, and royalty-free license to reproduce and distribute copies of the work offered for sale through its services. Unfortunately, these terms are typically non-negotiable.
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a little artistic humour
BAC Member Benefits The BAC’s primary purpose is to nurture the artistic expression of creatives in Barbados. If you are an artist who wants to learn, share ideas, and contribute to the growth of Visual Arts as a viable sector in Barbados, then you should join the Barbados Arts Council. We also welcome persons who appreciate art but who may not be artistically inclined, and who want to add their other talents and time to help nurture the visual arts in Barbados. Apart from the satisfaction of assisting the Council in achieving its goals, here are some of the benefits that BAC members enjoy: 1. Members can participate in any BAC group show without paying hanging fees! (up to 3 pieces per person) 2. New and emerging artists get the opportunity to show their artwork and gain experience at the BAC gallery when they might not yet gain access to other galleries 3. The BAC gallery commission on sales is only 30%! (considerably less than other galleries) 4. Members get a 5% discount when they purchase art supplies from Laurie Dash & Sons 5. Get a 5% - 10% discount on selected items from The Art Hub Visit the Gallery and apply for membership today. An annual fee of Bds $100 is applicable. Art Students (secondary school and BCC) are eligible for a student membership fee of Bds $50 per year.
BAC Art Gallery hours: Mon, Weds, Fri 9:30am to 3:30pm, #20 Pelican Craft Centre, Harbour Road, Bridgetown, Barbados Tel: (246) 426-4385 Email: thebarbadosartscouncil@gmail.com Facebook: Barbados Arts Council Official Page Instagram: BarbadosArtsCouncil www.thebarbadosartscouncil.com