Installation view, Jahmani Council (photographed by Robert Ayre, courtesy of the EMC) This post was first published in the Monitor Tribune (then the Jamaica Monitor) in two parts, on August 21 and August 28, 2022. It is reproduced here with minor changes and more images. Every year in June, the School of Visual Arts (SVA)... 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 →
Panopticon: Standing in the Pandemic
Dumain Bent - Hell is Other People (2020), Mixed media installation, size irregular, c 9 x 5' Below is my foreword for the exhibition Panopticon: Standing in the Pandemic, which was curated by the students in my Introduction to Curatorial Studies course at the Edna Manley College. The exhibition is on view until May 10... Continue Reading →
Talking Back: Visual Conversations about Sexual Abuse
The Edna Manley College, where I teach, has been in the news recently with allegations of sexual harassment. Here is not the place to comment on that particular instance but it is widely recognized that it is part of a much bigger problem in Jamaica, that affects many, if not all public and private sector... Continue Reading →
“As I Am”: Kimani Beckford’s Affirmations
The young Jamaican painter Kimani Beckford currently has a solo-exhibition tour project, titled Affirmation. The exhibition is shown at two venues: its inaugural display was held at the Jamaica Conference Centre in Kingston, in space that is used for art exhibitions by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), and has now closed. The second leg... Continue Reading →
The School of Visual Arts/EMC Final Year Exhibition: Six Highlights
I always look forward to the annual final year exhibition of the School of Visual Arts of the Edna Manley College and the opening is usually a much-anticipated, well-attended local art world event. It is, by and large, in this exhibition that we see the future of art in Jamaica (and the broader Caribbean) emerging... Continue Reading →