Candid conversations
Published:Sunday | June 2, 2013 | 12:00 AM
Amitabh Sharma, Contributor
A piece of art is never a finished work. It answers a question, which has been asked, and asks a new question, says American sculptor Robert Engman. As an artist, the creative thought process is never-ending, exploring beyond the unfathomed, exploring off the beaten path and accentuating the society they live in.
Exhibiting their creative acumen, the final year bachelor of fine arts and diploma programme students of the School of the Visual Arts, Edna Manley College, focused the spotlight on the contemporary Jamaican society.
For 33 young artists, some thought-provoking conversations have been etched, queries painted and issues highlighted - from female sexuality and equality, to exploring ethnography or the app-mad world.
The overcast May skies of Kingston and the occasional downpour were not going to be a damper, instead, the rains soaked and enhanced the creative essence of the exhibits.
A walk through the exhibits was a journey, unveiling characters, colours and genres.
The works of
these young artists present a wide spectrum of the creative thought
processes - shocking, subtle, chaotic and meticulous, each highlighting
an issue and raising a query at the same time. As Pablo Picasso said,
"Others have seen what is and asked why. I have seen what could be and
asked why
not."
Photos
by Amitabh Sharma
- Exploring female sexuality
"I am woman and I am liberated," pronounced Sandra Green, whose exhibit in mixed media and sculptures explored female sexuality.
"There is a lot going on here, the whole idea is to bring out the layers in the works," Green said.
The room housing Sandra Green's work is a blend of visual rhetoric of female sexuality, sensuality and sensibility.
Balance the stark with the subtle, vulvas are exhibited from powerful and majestic to ambiguous. "It is explored in the context of a heterosexual space; comforting the heterosexual male onlooker while paying special attention to the appearance of vulvas in terms of size, shape, colour, texture, etc.," Green explained.
The objective, she said, was not to titillate but to delve into feminine symbolism and metaphorical emblems that are both universal and narrow to female existence.
- App-mad world
The way humans are
becoming atuned to and, at times, 'enslaved' to technology - some
worship at the feet of the almighty mobile phone
app.
Converting the room into a modern-day church,
Jonoi Messam painted the white walls with caricatures of people in
monochrome, some in blue, clutching their smart devices, oblivious to
their surroundings. "Social media has become a religion," Messam said.
"So I called my exhibit Religion 2.0."
A new media art
presentation, Religion 2.0 is interactive - complete with hashtag and
linked to an app. "One can scan the room (where the exhibit is housed),
and connect to either Facebook or Twitter," Messam
informed.
This budding graphic designer said he wants
to create awareness about social media and how it has attained 'divine'
proportions. "Religion 2.0 is a social commentary on social media. The
work attempts to emulate social media in a digital and physical sense
using a satiric use of a religious framework," he
said.
- Beyond a sex symbol
A giant,
voluptuous corset stands out in the middle of the room, as Yakeba Walsh
attempts to look at females beyond sex objects and recognise them as
human beings.
"This body of work was created from my
diverse beliefs, ideas and experiences which have propelled me to
advocate the rights of women on political, social and economic issues,"
Walsh said.
On the walls are mounted canvases with
silhouettes of the female figurine, with the midriff as a bullseye, some
with blood splattered - symbolising pain.
A textiles
and fibre arts major, Walsh said she wants to use her works of art to
make a statement in support of female equality, independence, success,
strength, and enlightenment in Jamaica.
"It is time
that people look beyond the 'Coco-Cola' figure," she
said.
- Street art unlimited
There are
a multitude of hues that strike the visitor, who is greeted with zinc
walls painted in murals, cheap paint, flour, sugar, and glue strewn on
the floor.
Matthew McCarthy's works exude the chaos
and characters that are vibrant on the sidewalks and marketplaces, save
for the blaring music and push carts trying to outrun each other. "I
have always gravitated to street art," he says regarding the inspiration
for his work.
"It is important that we recognise and
encourage street art," McCarthy said. "It is a rich part of Jamaica's
culture and goes beyond the graffiti in the United
States."
A literal writing on the wall, McCarthy
paints a social commentary, with sketches and paintings of police,
onlookers, politicians, street signs, cultural objects, news reports,
rum-bar talk, Rastafarians with opinions, young artists and sign
painters intertwined. The visual communication major is out there to
make a mark - literally and figuratively.