Shanique Stewart - Jamaica Is Not a Real Place, Water Lane. Sponsored by TEF and Sherwin Williams. This article was originally published in the Jamaica Monitor on 4 and 11, 2021 and is now posted as it was submitted, with images added. All photos are by Stuart Reeves, courtesy of Doris Gross, Kingston Creative. Part I... Continue Reading →
Review: The 2020 Edna Manley College Fine Arts Graduates
Rohmearo McFarlane, Independent Study, 2020, mixed media installation This article was originally published in the Jamaica Monitor, in two parts, on May 30 and June 6, 2021, respectively. More images have been added. All photographs are by Joni Gordon, courtesy of the Edna Manley College. Part I The year 2020 was a challenging year for... Continue Reading →
Review: And I Resumed the Struggle
Greg Bailey – Mushroom Clouds (2020), oil on canvas, 71 x 88” (photo: Veerle Poupeye) This article was originally published in the Jamaica Monitor of May 23, 2021. More images have been added. On December 10, 2020, I attended an exhibition opening, my first since our first Covid-19 lockdown started. The occasion was And I... Continue Reading →
Provocations: Friends and Combolo?
The National Gallery of Jamaica used to be criticized severely for catering primarily to an inner circle of favored artists, collectors and other associates. Annie Paul was once one of the National Gallery's fiercest critics on that count and she took on the Chief Curator David Boxer on many occasions. Since 2016, Paul sits on... Continue Reading →
Preserving Jamaica’s Artistic Heritage
This post is adapted from the paper I have recently presented at the "Regional Workshop on the Conventions on the Illicit trafficking of Cultural Objects", which was hosted by the Jamaican Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport. This workshop was held at the Jamaica Pegasus, from March 2-5, 2020. Among the topics for discussion... Continue Reading →
Provocations: What about the Kingston Biennial?
Some time in late 2018, the National Gallery of Jamaica decided to cancel the Jamaica Biennial, of which two editions had been held, in 2014 and 2017. The Jamaica Biennial was the re-conceptualized successor to the National Biennial and, before that, the Annual National Exhibitions. While still hamstrung by the expectations and entitlements that had... Continue Reading →