Art of the month: ‘Enigmatick Funktification’

It’d be rather difficult to explore our Bahamian Domestic Permanent Exhibition without noticing “Enigmatick Funktification” – an energetic work occupying more than 48 square feet of wall. The acrylic painting is the product of a collaborative approach, known as “Jammin’”, by John Beadle, the late Jackson Burnside and Stan Burnside.

Though it could easily take days to thoroughly examine the work, visitors can find clues pointing to the painting’s Junkanoo roots in a single glance. “Enigmatick Funktification” – a mélange of vibrant colours, figures in costumes and musical instruments – is reminiscent of Bay Street in the early morning hours of Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. This is when Junkanoo, a biennial street parade and the country’s most revered festival, takes place. There is good reason for the tradition’s presence in the painting.

Discovering their affinity for Junkanoo in the late 70s and early 80s, Jackson and Stan Burnside were leading members of the Saxons Junkanoo group for years before leaving to help found the One Family group. It’s no surprise, then, that Junkanoo is heavily represented in their works.

Jammin’ – a term coined by the Burnside brothers – originated in Junkanoo shacks. It refers to the process of as many as six Junkanooers working on a single piece simultaneously. Inspired by the approach, the duo embraced the Jammin’ methodology in their studios, creating works together.

Founding B-C.A.U.S.E. (Bahamian Creative Artists United for Serious Expression) in the early 1990s, the Burnside brothers expanded the Jammin’ circle and invited Beadle, Brent Malone, Antonius Roberts and Max Taylor to collaborate on a body of work. They later invited then-recent COB graduate John Beadle to join what is now referred to as the “Burnside-Beadle-Burnside” collaboration.

Between 1995 and 1996, the trio produced a series of works of which “Enigmatick Funktification” was a part. The collection traveled to Atlanta, Georgia in 1996, where it amazed visitors at the Olympic Games. “Enigmatick Funktification” has since made the rounds and returned home, where it rests comfortably in our permanent collection. Stop by and see it Tuesday to Saturday between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Sunday between 12 noon and 4 p.m.

NE7 is just around the corner

From left are NE7 curators Holly Bynoe and Michael Edwards. JODI MINNIS

If you keep up with us regularly, you probably know by now that we are restlessly eager to unveil the Seventh National Exhibition, Antillean: an Ecology. Led by NE7 curators Holly Bynoe and Michael Edwards, Antillean: an Ecology is a body of works by 51 artists responding to themes of class, race, the economy and privilege.

It is our hope that Antillean: an Ecology will encourage members of the public to ask questions, reflect on themselves and enter a space of critical thinking about the implicit and explicit issues that arise from personal and national identity. Influences like citizenship, migration, the landscape, slavery, religion and the creolization and hybridization of the Caribbean and wider world will be explored through artwork, poetry, a mixture of personal and academic essays and a series of panels and artists’ talks.

“I think it’s important to understand that we all carry perceptions, whether they’re race, class, economics. So a large part of the show is to interrogate these kinds of perceptions we have. I think it’s important for people to understand that we’re all part of this cultural matrix… And the role of the artist is to challenge these perceptions, to reframe them, to re-constitute and retell a different kind of narrative to challenge people’s perspectives,” explained Edwards.

Bynoe believes the exhibition’s significance and relevance in modern day society has spoken for itself through the reaction from the local artist community.

“Initially, when we put out the open call, it was met with a lot of ambivalence because people have this understanding of race relations in the Caribbean, and oftentimes it’s very simplistic,” she recalled. “I think over time, and with a good communication from the entire team here, artists turned from being ambivalent to being critical about their space, so it was no longer a surface understanding of how these relations and social concerns play out in this space but a deep reflection of how it also manifests in personal ways, social ways, in ways that reflect how they engage with their communities.”

Antillean: an Ecology will open at 6 p.m. on Thursday, December 11. Those interested in engaging in the conversation on the social, political and cultural influences on individual and national identity are encouraged to attend the opening night and panel discussions.

Upcoming Exhibition: NE7

Art of the Month: Shanty Town Tea Service

On my way to work, I noticed that a familiar town had been demolished. Boards and other forms of structure that once housed a community lay broken on the ground.

I’ve always known that the town enclosed by trees and bushes was there, but when it was exposed, the size and difference of the town was a shock. I was looking at another way of living, another standard of living; how certain groups of people lived.

July 2nd, 2014, Tracy-Ann Perpall, also known as TAP, released a documentary on YouTube called Bwapen: Village Documentary. This documentary gave insight on the burning of a ‘shanty town’ village off of Joe Farrington Road and the Haitian-Bahamian situation in the Bahamas. Perpall’s investigation into this tragedy unearthed tensions between Bahamian landowners and ‘shanty town’ residents, the true conditions of said ‘shanty towns’, and ended by questioning the public. “Does real change occur with dismantling Bwapen, or is it just a band-aid attempting to cover the symptoms of underlying problem” – Tracy Ann Perpall.

Over the past year and a half, the government has been working to effectively address and act upon the issue of growing shantytowns within New Providence. Over the past year and a half, the island has experienced a mass exposure of those towns, several fires of buildings in the towns, and demolition and plans of demolition for some areas. These issues of immigration and the living standards of some immigrants and poor Bahamians in the Bahamas have not popped up over night.

In 2011, Jeffrey Meris, a graduate of the College of the Bahamas and a Popop Junior Prize Winner, constructed Shanty Town Tea Service, which is on display in the Bahamian Domestic exhibition. As a Haitian-Bahamian, Meris comments on the Haitian-Bahamian situation and the view of said people through the manipulation of clay. The class of a tea service is not often compared or associated with standard of shantytowns. Contradictory in some senses, some may say. The standards of shanty towns deemed as “environments that incubate horrible, horrible health challenges,” by Duane Miller does not compare with the dainty, polished China set utilized during tea parties.

In 2011, Jeffrey Meris was concluding his studies at the College of the Bahamas. He commented on the social structure of shantytowns within the Bahamas. In 2014, Tracy-Ann Perpall exposed the social structure of a forgotten shantytown in her documentary. At the later part of 2014, the relevance of the conversation still prevails. During the late part of 2014, on my way to work, I noticed that a familiar town had been demolished.

Shanty Town Tea Service
Jeffrey Meris
Dawn Davies Collection

Written by NAGB Gallery Assistant, Jodi Minnis for the Art of the Month.

Exhibition Opening

The public is cordially invited to the exhibition opening for Ian Smith's Bahama Jam at 6:30PM, Thursday, November 6th at the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas.

Professional Artist 101

What does it mean to be a professional artist?

Working at The National Art Gallery of the Bahamas (NAGB)* we often have persons come in, asking to rent gallery space for exhibitions and how does one get their work in the NAGB. This shows us that there is a gap in the education between being taught art at your local high school or for persons just delving into their art for the first time, to becoming a professional artist. This new series, Professional Artist 101 will help with those looking to make that transition and will be a monthly article with tips and pointers, like who is a professional artist, how to establish a network or get into the art community, how to exhibit your work and how to eventually get your works in a prominent space like the NAGB.

 Hard at work: Nastassia Pratt prepping to start a painting.

Persons often ask if they only work on Sunday or the weekend would they be considered an artist. In this aspect an artist works should not be judged by the time of the day or week they choose to work rather it is if your consistent, does the community know your working, when last has anyone seen your work has your work grown or changed? These are the things that should be considered rather than what day you choose to work. However a professional artist works and does not only work when inspiration strikes, or when they have the money for this specific thing, they make sacrifices and get the results they want.

As we delve into this more we will extend the full answer to this question so please leave a response and join the discussion.

* In British and Commonwealth usage, the word gallery alone implies a public gallery. The Bahamas having been a British colony adheres to this term of gallery rather than museum. The NAGB is not a commercial gallery.

AW

Feature from the Exhibition: Rootsy

Rootsy

Jackson Petit

Acrylic on canvas

 48 x 32

D'Aguilar Art Foundation Collection

Rootsy is currently on display at The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas, as part of the Permanent Exhibition: The Bahamian Domestic. Originally on display as part of his solo exhibition, The Surface Beneath, Petit produced this piece after winning the 2012 Central Bank competition.

In this piece Petit explores the notion of masking oneself, be it personally or for a wider audience, as the individual in the painting stares at the audience with vacant eyes. Crowned in local foliage, Petite purposely chooses to integrate the Bahamian landscape into his work. This creates connections between artist, artwork and viewer, as the natural motifs provide a familiar point of reference. This common ground culturally integrates the work within a wider dialogue of 'Bahamian art'. Further, it situates the individual in the painting within a natural and cultural landscape, and poses the question: who is he masking himself from? As a Haitian-Bahamian artist, Petit actively integrates his personality and history into his work. Rootsy is thus, a form of self-portraiture, exploring the artist's own identity as it relates to his person, but also his history and culture.

As a central piece in The Bahamian Domestic, Rootsy is a particularly strong choice as it directly relates to the exhibition's exploration of Bahamian social and cultural identity. Remaining masked, the piece explores notions of 'Bahamianess' and what, as a nation, we choose to show and choose to hide. This focus on depth, on seeing beyond simple everyday existence, encourages viewers to look below the surface, deeper even. Coupled with the other pieces in The Bahamian Domestic, Rootsy is part of a larger call to notice one's physical, social and cultural landscape and one's place in it.

The Bahamian Domestic is on display on the bottom floor at The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas. The Gallery is open from 10AM to 4PM, Tuesday to Saturday and 12PM to 4PM, Sunday.

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The Bahamian Domestic is on display on the bottom floor at The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas. The Gallery is open from 10AM to 4PM, Tuesday to Saturday and 12PM to 4PM, Sunday.

Biography of the Artist:
Jackson Petit (born 1983, Nassau, The Bahamas) was educated at The College of The Bahamas and Toronto Film College, Toronto Canada. From 1998 to 2004 he was a participant in the FINCO Summer Art Workshops and has taken part in numerous group exhibitions. He won The Central Bank of The Bahamas Art competition six times in various categories and received top honors in the CLiCO Caribbean Art Competition in 2003.

Further Reading:
The Bahamian Artwork Collection: Jackson Petit
Jackson Petit 'Removing The Mask'