Canvas Caribbean
Committed to the idea of helping each other to grow and develop professionally as artists, the members of the group first got together in 2004 and after their first “Showing” at The Upper Room Gallery, Mt. St Benedict’s, Canvas Caribbean was formed.
Over the years, the group has had annual exhibitions, hosted seminars, workshops, and travelled together. Trips to Suriname, Columbia, and Venezuela as well as Brazil were made, all in the interest of creating awareness of the group and generally inspiring and uplifting each other.
The group is currently made up of sixteen artists, all of whom are graduates of The University of the West Indies.
Mentored and encouraged by other artists such as Pat Bishop and Carlisle Harris, members’ works reflect a variety of styles, techniques, media and content. Through our paintings and other artworks our greatest hope is to reach out to the local, regional and international community, inspire art lovers, engage critics and motivate educators.
Adele Bynoe
Textile artist, Adele Bynoe admits that silk is one of her favorite fabrics for creating her textile pieces. The delicate nature of the silk and the ease with which the colours seem to be magically created are some of the benefits of working with the material. Bynoe has also expanded her creations and is now experimenting with mixed materials and acrylic works on canvas. Bynoe’s puzzle inspired paintings are works in progress. They are experimental works that are reflective of the belief that much of life is a puzzle. Creating these paintings for Bynoe is similar to piecing together the puzzles of life.
Bynoe has been exhibiting annually with Canvas Caribbean since its inception.
Carol Lewis
My contribution to this exhibition showcases artwork which took great pleasure with some measure of pain to produce, and has been inspired by my appreciation of the various genres of art.
Some of the larger pieces were based on an expressionistic interpretation of the human psyche, in which I experimented with partial images of my subjects’ faces and juxtaposed it with unrelated visual elements to provoke the sensibilities of the onlooker. The emphatic use of bold diverse colours were applied to convey a myriad of emotional intensities, and also to exaggerate the various forms and relief projections on the respective individual pieces.
The smaller pieces are a reflection of my love for music. I conveyed this imagery by the application of ‘stylized’ and mix media techniques, which has become an integral part of my artistic expression.
My goals are to provoke the mind, accept no boundaries and to excite the onlookers’ curiosity. Enjoy!
Darron Small
Darron Small was born on July 31st 1979 in the town of Tunapuna. He has been a practicing artist for the past fifteen years. His work, not bound by any one particular method or medium, is continually evolving and is reflective of his journey toward full self expression.
Kathy Farabi
In 1998 Kathy Farabi was encouraged to enter the Visual Arts Degree programme at the Centre for Creative and Festival Arts, at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, as a part-time student. She graduated in 2003 with First Class Honours.
Kathy presently works at the University School in St. Augustine, teaching art to children from 4 years to 11 years old. She joined the UWI graduate group, "CANVAS CARIBBEAN" and has participated in numerous group exhibitions.
Kathy paints themes from the environment, landscapes, birds, flowers etc., but the themes which inspire most of her paintings relate to the beautiful teachings and principles revealed in the Writings of the Baha’i Faith by its Founder, Baha’u’llah and His son Abdu’l-Baha. These themes include the concepts of harmony between all the races and religions of the world and the establishment of world peace and unity. They also reflect spiritual qualities needed to achieve these principles. The paintings offer a social commentary with a positive dimension - the suggestion of hope for the future of mankind.
Kathy also experiments with different media to produce new and exciting effects.
“…in this wonderful new age, art is worship. The more thou strivest to perfect it, the closer wilt thou come to God. What bestowal could be greater than this, that one’s art should be even as the act of worshipping the Lord? That is to say, when thy fingers grasp the paintbrush, it is as if thou wert at prayer in the temple.” Abdu’l-Baha: from the Baha’i Writings
Leona Fabien
An Art and Design teacher, Leona Fabien enjoys all of the processes involved in the act of creating. She is often inspired by both her natural and man-made environment – local flora and architectural motifs. This exhibition presents works of art that were created out of pure joy and the need to paint. Colour and shape play a vital role in creating the various moods that her paintings express. Colours interact with each other depending on the quality of the space they occupy. All in all, Fabien strives to create a sense of balance and unity in all of her creations.
Fabien studied Visual Arts at The Centre for the Creative and Festival Arts, UWI and was the recipient of numerous awards. She was awarded two Bursary Awards from the UWI Endowment and Development Fund for excelling in Art at the university for the academic year 1999/2000 and 2000/2001. She was then awarded the Eastman-Christensen Visual Arts Award for excelling in Art in her second year at the university.
Fabien has been exhibiting annually with The Women In Art Organisation. She has also exhibited in joint exhibitions at the Gallery 1234 Normandie, The National Museum and Art Gallery, The Central Bank, Bois Cano- Kapok Hotel, Southern Art Gallery. The Art Society of Trinidad and Tobago and at The Gallery at Fine Art. Presently she teaches at Bishop Anstey High where she experiences on a daily basis what may be described as the intangiblerole that Art plays in the lives of her students.
Raymond Alexander
I love the immediacy, clarity and vibrancy of both watercolours and acrylic. Both mediums lend themselves to the creation of visually ‘light’ productions that appeal easily to the senses.
Working with watercolours allows me to explore a variety of still life pieces that focus upon the natural beauty of the simple yet fascinating elements of our local flora and fauna.
Through the acrylic medium I explore subject matter with much more intent and intensity. The content of my pieces reflect more thematic concerns that draw upon our society, the human condition and my own personal experiences. To this end, colour and line play a very important role in my depictions. My style and technique meanders through representational, figurative and expressionistic elements to compose a picture that tells a story, impacts upon the visual senses and causes the viewer to pause in thought.
However, no matter whether the subject or style, there is always the pursuit of the truth and beauty – a constant search for ‘meaning’.
Reita Antoine
Born in Princes Town (South Trinidad), the artist has worked for over twenty-two years in the area of Art Education. Her studies began at Naparima Girls' High School, where she also pursued French and Spanish. Reita attained her B. A. Special in Visual Arts with Human Resource Management from the University of the West Indies in 2004. She also completed her Diploma in the Teaching of Visual Arts in 2006 and in 2010, she obtained her M. A. in Education. Her passion for teaching Art extends well beyond the classroom walls and through her recently established Wearable Art business (www.aareandesigns.com) she is able to engage patrons at yet another level. She is also the President and one of the founding members of Canvas Caribbean. Through her paintings, Reita seeks to transmit aspects of our rich and fascinating cultural heritage which invariably lends itself to our unique Trinbagonian identity.
Vibert Medford
I have been a practicing artist for several years, though not professionally until 2004. My present work involves digital painting using computer software, graphic design, painting in acrylics and photography. I have been a photographer for over 20 years and enjoy the limitless creative possibilities allowed by digital photography. On display is a miniscule glimpse of some of my work.
Chris Thomas
When we create we make statements about our environment and lives. CHRIS THOMAS (artist) Trinidadian, born in the former capital St Joseph Trinidad West Indies, completed his education in fine arts at the University of the West Indies. References to his portfolio includes: – drawing, air-brushing, stage design & concepts , wedding design/concepts, interior decorating, fine art painting, costume design/building, and Beauty pageant coordinating. His concepts reflects the underlining fragments to meaning, images/concepts that drives him to curiosity and there fore in a sense sets a course of achieving.
Tricia Ward
Ms Ward considers herself a semi abstract artist who focuses on exploring a variety of shapes, colours and textures in her work, usually based on a specific theme. The colours used are intended to give the abstract or semi abstract forms generated new meaning.
She has participated in a number of group exhibitions with Canvas Caribbean since its inception and continues to be an active member of the organisation.
Ms Ward has been a graduate of the Centre for Creative and Festival Arts at the University of the West Indies since 2003 and holds a B.A. degree in Visual Arts.
Vejaya Mungal
Vejaya Mungal is a painter and teacher. Her formal art education began at Secondary School and continued at the Valsayn Teachers’ Training College under the tutorage of artist and educator, Ainsworth Ovid, where she was awarded the most outstanding art student and a Distinction in the Art. She holds a Certificate in Visual Arts and a Bachelor of Arts Special in Visual Arts with Honours from The University of the West Indies, St Augustine. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Philosophy in Cultural Studies at the same institution and earns a living by teaching Visual Arts at a Secondary School.
In 1993 she made her debut with a solo exhibition of watercolours at Sanfest, Naparima Bowl, San Fernando. Vejaya has been painting and exhibiting her work annually since 2002, in 2004 she became one of the founding members of the Artists’ Group, Canvas Caribbean,an idea initiated by the late and renowned artist and musician Doctor Patricia (Pat) Bishop.