For many who choose various mediums of art to express themselves, it is not the rendering of a particular scene or object that is of prime importance, but what that scene evokes in the artist. As the French impressionist Henri Matisse once said, "I do not literally paint the table, but the emotion it produces in me." For years, BV Islanders have used art as a way of recording history. When photography was unknown on the island, a sketchpad was always handy and painting followed soon after.
Local artist Lutia Tai Durante had a unique approach to his early art training. His first "canvas" was the wall of his mother's house and his "brush" was the coal from the coal pot from which she used to cook. Unfortunately, these early masterpieces were washed off the walls. Tai (as he is often called) was born in the B.V.I., but moved to St.Thomas at an early age. Self-taught as a painter, he returned to Tortola in the 1990's and began to take his art more seriously. Lutia Tai's stunning oils on canvas depict fisherman and agricultural workers, the warp and woof of early B.V.I. society, in amazing detail with the folds of clothes on his subjects exhibiting lifelike texture and colour.
One does not think of art representing the B.V.I. without the name Joseph Hodge coming to mind. A committed and hardworking artist whose works have been shown internationally, Hodge can most often be found at his studio at the Craft Alive Village by the Ferry Dock. Smiling with a paintbrush in hand, Joseph often jokes and talks with tourists who come into his studio to view his acrylics on canvas close up. His work is known for capturing the many moods of the sea and the small fishing boats and sloops that used to ply these waters. Hodge's technique includes short, thick strokes of paint on canvas that create a Van Gogh-like pattern of light and depth. His paintings are majestic in scope, showing how small man is against the forces of nature, which is how the early seafarers of these islands must have felt.
What makes art in the B.V.I. particularly unique is the diversity of artists who claim the islands as their home. The siren lure of these islands has culled a community of well-traveled artists who bring an eclectic mix of influences to bear on their work.
One of these well travelled artists is Aragorn Dick-Read. Aragorn's Studio and Local Arts Centre on Beef Island's Trellis Bay, is spread out over several stone buildings with thatch porticoes under which baskets of local produce compete with crafts and fine art. Aragorn's copper and steel sculptures are what you might call "interactive art" as his cutout silhouetted shapes use both light and fire to illuminate the images. Aragorn utilizes his studio as a workshop to teach indigenous crafts and also as a showcase to bring together arts and crafts from all over the Caribbean.
B.V.I. galleries cannot help but express the uniqueness and charm of the islands and Main Street seems to be a repository for several of them. Ensconced in a charming, historic, West Indian house located across from Pusser's Pub, The Gallery opened just five years ago with Lisa Muddiman Gray's batik prints inspired by her studies of African batik textile designs. The Gallery also has the largest selection of paintings by B.V.I. artists under one roof. Arranged along the white paneled walls in loosely separated sections are the works of 22 different artists.
Once across the wood threshold of this open-air bungalow, a delightful splash of colour and style creates a sumptuous eye feast. Watercolours of Caribbean life on the streets humorously rendered by artist Aileen Malcolm show in one piece, a local vendor under the broad shade of her umbrella casting a look at two pasty white bathing suit clad tourists. On an adjacent wall are popular artist Linda Babin's simple line paintings on silk of traditional West Indian architecture with a goat casually grazing in the yard. Lisa’Äôs original works of sea turtles, and close up floral studies are also reproduced in prints and clay coasters as well.
Although the styles of the art showcased in the B.V.I. may vary greatly, the themes have much in common. The sheer beauty of the environment: exquisite sunsets, as-far-as’Äìthe-eye-can-see beach scenes, the pink to peachy coral hues hidden in the mysterious labyrinth of a conch shell, a single tyre hung by a rope from the arc of a graciously accommodating palm tree. Artists here have no lack of tropical imagery to work with and the island culture lends another dimension for creative expression.
One artist who captures the culture well through humour is long time resident David Thrasher, whose years in the animation and cartoon world leave an indelible imprint on his work. When not producing his light hearted pieces for illustration or tee shirt designs, David turns his attention with colour and shade to the fascinating old churches and scenic residences of Carrot Bay. His Giclee prints (high quality prints produced on archival paper), offset litho prints and note cards can be found at stores around the island as well as at his studio gallery, Caribbean Landscapes, tucked behind Coco Plums restaurant in Apple Bay.
Although no art school per se exits in the territory, some of the long time resident "ladies of the art world" here have formed weekly painting groups to encourage and critique one another's work. Some of these groups have been in existence for over 20 years. Artist and author, Jill Tattersall, arrived in the islands with her husband in 1965 aboard a banana boat and has been depicting island life in watercolours ever since. Her images found also on note cards have become part of the iconic lore of the islands. Co-owner of the Sugar Mill Restaurant and Hotel, Jinx Morgan produces watercolours that represent the Caribbean's bright light and easygoing life - a rope hammock with a soft pillow in the shade of a verandah overlooking the sea.
Another charming gallery and one of the first to showcase Caribbean art is the Sunny Caribbee Spice Shop and Art Gallery just around the first bend in Main Street. Although the Gunter family opened the Spice Shop 25 years ago, the gallery section has been in existence about ten years. Once past the fragrances of exotic teas, spicy sauces, and caliente condiments, one will find the gallery tucked in the back of this quaint West Indian bungalow that once was the first guesthouse in Road Town.
Amidst Haitian sculptures, finely crafted wooden bowls and platters are the works of some of the preeminent artists depicting Caribbean life. Sunny Caribbee has had over 16 art shows representing B.V.I. painters like Roz Griffith, Bruce Smith, Tom White and Lesley Sanders. Probably the artist whose work is the most well known, if by image and not by name, is painter Karl Merklein.
Whimsical, fun, vibrant and full of humourous detail, Merklein's work in one critic's view "makes you wish you could jump in the painting and join the fun." Recalling his draw to the Caribbean Merklein says, "I spent the first 11 years of my life in Oxford, England, where it was cold, dull and serious. The day I found out there were places where the sun shines more than three days a year I was off and running." Part of Karl's inspiration is to preserve the culture and history of the islands before it is lost. In the B.V.I. for several weeks a year, he photographs his subjects and then works from the still life creating a post card world of animated island life framed by his Caribbean motif borders.
Warm weather and blue skies often beckon B.V.I. artists out from their studios. Fine art has never been restricted to canvas, textile or metal here in the islands. Several years ago a band of painters under the leadership of artist Reuben Vanterpool took to the walls - what emerged is the now famous 60 foot long Mural Wall on the Ridge Road. Armed with paint and brushes and a desire to see the early agricultural history of the B.V.I. depicted in images, B.V.I. artists sketched out and painted an amazing panorama of early island life. Foremost of these painters was of course, Reuben himself, who for years had committed to canvas scenes of local everyday life: farmers on donkeys on the way to market with sacks of produce and cassava bread baking on a wide round metal plate over a fire. A boyish face incongruous with his trim white beard, Vanterpool not only over saw the mural project but has also inspired and mentored many young B.V.I, artists over the years.
Carol Vanterpool is a multi-faceted artist who expresses herself in a variety of mediums. Among these are her use of photography to capture island life, sculptures which whimsically blend traditional items in untraditional ways, and her vividly hued canvases splashed with bold images. As one of the founders of the Artist Guild of the B.V.I., Carol, along with a group of well-known B.V.I. artists, is promoting local art throughout the world. The Artist Guild has sponsored shows featuring British Virgin Island artists in London at the BVI House, in New York City at the Ramscale Studio and locally at the recently opened Sugar Works Museum in Road Town.
One could say creating art in the B.V.I. is a bit like eating the food here, there is no one flavour that can sum up a dish. For the artist, it is a spice bowl of artistic expression.