Detail from John Stollmeyer’s ‘Cairi’

‘LAB Work’ in the InterAmericas Space

‘Paradise’

Suzanne Nunez on the Wall Space

‘Objects & Actions’ in the Main Gallery

‘13 Lunar Months’ in the InterAmericas Space

‘Caribbean Books’ on the Wall Space

‘Roots & Wings’ in the Main Gallery

Workshops

big River2
25th March - 9th April 2001

The second ‘big River2’ International Artists Workshopwas hosted in the remote location of Grande Riviere, on Trinidad’s north east coast. The workshop, situated near the river of Grande Riviere, after which the workshop is named, gave twenty-four participating artists from fourteen countries the opportunity to work uninterrupted. Artists were encouraged to not only use the location as an influence, but also to use found and unusual materials creatively and efficiently, while experimenting and developing new ideas and practices. CCA hosted the Workshop, in collaboration with the Triangle Trust, from March 25th – April 9th 2001.

This is a non-commercial and artist-led project. Participating artists involved in organising the workshop, G4+, encouraged site specific, performance-based and ecologically sound work. On reading Antonio Benitez-Rojo's essay "THE NEW ATLANTIS - The ultimate Caribbean archipelago" (Hopscotch 1.1 1999) ideas that seem worthy of reflection presented themselves for use in the big River2theme: ‘The Dynamics of the Hinge’. Artists from the archipelago, the coastal rim of Central and South America, Africa and Asia were invited to focus on the dynamics of locations within the context of fragmented regions loosely connected by pluralistic hinges. Artists were encouraged to explore this New Atlantic complexity as a starting point in their work and attempt to give form to our particular alignment - we simultaneously pivot on an axis that connects us in our contemporary position, as well as reel within the histories that have divided us.

The Open Day was an excellent opportunity for approximately 400 visitors from all over the island to see the site specific work. An exhibition of most of the work produced at ‘big River2’was held at CCA7, a Centre for Contemporary Art, in Port of Spain. A catalogue will be produced and a documentary is being produced by Banyan Productions about the workshop.

‘big River2’ Participants

Watamula
23 September - 12th October 2000

About the Site
The Watamula International Artists' Workshop took place at Landhuis Knip in Curaçao between September 21 and October 12, 2000. Landhuis Knip, once a plantation home, was the site of a major slave revolt in 1795. The signal for the rebellion came from plantation Kenepa (Knip), situated in Bandabou, the property of Shon Caspar Lodewijk van Uytrecht. Tula, the leader of the rebellion, belonged to this plantation. Together with Bastiaan Carpata and others, Tula prepared the decisive strategy for a battle that lasted almost two months. A battle in which the most oppressed and humiliated group of people, the slaves, had decided to unite and fight for freedom. They were conscious of the disgust the government showed towards blacks and the slave population and they were aware of the punishment they would receive if their battle were to fail. But they were absolutely convinced that their cause was just. Was it not true that white people fought each other over the right of ownership of this island - and were not free black men and mulattos among them?

The slaves could not leave written accounts of what happened between mid-august and the beginning of October of 1795. What exists in the archives are the reports and court decisions recorded by the dominant white administrators of the time.

Watamula Workshop Group

La Llama
4th – 18th June 2000

In a time when the so-called economic globalization, the quick access to information and the overused concept of multiculturalism have established themselves in the space of contemporary debate and cultural production, the rise and proliferation of initiatives such as the Artist Workshop La Llama is not a concept disjointed from the interest promoted by the spirit of our time. The self-proclamation and definition of this type of experience as alternative spaces that confront the hegemony of established systems, regarding the creation, circulation and promotion of artistic works, both locally and internationally, hopes to bet on the configuration and creation of networks of artists from various geographic backgrounds. The workshop model proposed by the Triangle Art Workshop in 1982 in the city of New York, has not only stimulated many artists to partake in them, but also led them to organize similar experiences in their own countries. With the logistical support of Triangle Arts Trust (London), countries such as Nigeria, South Africa, United Kingdom, Zambia, United States, Botswana, Cuba, India, Mozambique, Trinidad, Kenya, Senegal and Jamaica, have become part of the exchange of multiglobal experiences through the organization of this kind of workshop, thus joining the current movement that searches for new spaces and promotes the interest of having artists from different cultural contexts as part of the international art arena.

La Llama Workshop Group

© 2000 Luis Romero

big River
18th April – 3rd May 1999

CCA hosted the first International Artists Workshop in Trinidad from April 18th - May 3rd 1999. The workshop, entitled big River, gave twenty-two participating artists from thirteen countries the opportunity to work uninterrupted. Artists were encouraged to experiment and develop new ideas and practices, often using unusual materials. The workshop was situated at the remote location of Grande Riviere, on Trinidad’s north coast.

The ‘working group’ (G3+) encouraged site specific work and collective interactions and was very much concerned with ecological and environmental development, especially in the light of modern political and economic divisions, and the ways in which the contemporary artist reflects these. Widening the notion of ecological and environmental issues, the working group was committed to sharing these ideas with artists from other countries, who learnt from each other’s diverse points of view regarding their practice and roles as artists in the developing world.

Participants sought the freedom and metaphorical space in which to develop their creative abilities in a situation that was neither determined by aesthetic dogmas imported from Europe and America nor by the necessities of the market which often drives artists to make objects for the tourist trade.

The Open Day was an opportunity for approximately 600 visitors from all over the island to see the work on-site. An exhibition of some of the work produced at big River was then held at the National Museum in Port of Spain on May 5th 1999. A catalogue has been published and Banyan Productions has produced a 1 hour documentary about the workshop.

big River Workshop Group

Residencies

Artist in the Community, International Residency Programme: 2000

In June of 2000, CCA hosted its inaugural Artist in the Community, International Residency Programme. Launched to coincide with the inauguration of CCA7, seven artists were making work in the artists’ studios at CCA7. The artists were Eddie Bowen (Trinidad), Lisa Brice (South Africa), Annalee Davis (Barbados), Peter Doig (Scotland), Che Lovelace (Trinidad), Andy Miller (Scotland) and Chris Ofili (England). Although it was our first residency, the feedback we received from participating artists was very positive. This first programme was sponsored by the British Council and the InterAmerican Development Bank.

Other CCA Projects


Regional Meeting on Cultural Enterprises Development in the Caribbean: Held by the Ford Foundation, New York in collaboration with CCA

In June 2000 this regional meeting brought together 170 persons from 23 countries to debate the state of cultural enterprises in the Caribbean. The general recognition of the role of culture in human development has led to its understanding not only as a way of life or as a heritage, but also as an enterprise. The notion of cultural enterprises is not limited to business ventures; it refers also to other critical undertakings in the field of arts and culture to enhance cultural stewardship and co-operative engagement. Such enterprises include structures, mechanisms and efforts to broaden public access to cultural resources, to build and sustain infrastructures for the production and transmission of knowledge, and to expand the civic and economic roles of artistic and cultural expressions. The development of these cultural enterprises is often undermined by several factors in much of the developing world where institutions to alleviate them are few, fragile, non-existent or not easily known.

The meeting held at the Kapok Hotel in Trinidad, also included a series of developmental workshops, which were open to the public, covering such topics as: "Culture and Development", "Cultural Marketing and Networking", "Cultural Management" as well as a "Youth Entrepreneurship Development" workshop.

The Front Gallery: An Oral History of the Arts:
A Project of Banyan Limited, InterAmericas and CCA
July 1999 – Onwards

"The Caribbean is the region of the world most penetrated by US television." Prof. Aggrey Brown "Who's Talking To Whom" Caribbean Institute of Mass Communication, The University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica.

The majority of Caribbean people, especially in the English speaking Caribbean, are subjected to a massive bombardment of television and film material from the United States. Only about 10% of television programming in the Eastern Caribbean is produced locally and this is mainly news presentation and sport with a sprinkling of studio talk-shows. Our publics are not exposed to the work of our artists and thinkers, who, by and large, operate in isolation with limited interpersonal contact. There is little opportunity for Caribbean people to objectify their experiences, appreciate their own world and work together towards the development of their own civilisation. As the Colombian novelist, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, has asked: "What happens when people have to dream other people's dreams?"

The Front Gallery aims not only to document the life and work of those who have contributed and continue to contribute to this civilisation, but will also record dialogues and exchanges between them. Their ideas can be seen in context, and, through this interaction, will be challenged to develop and evolve. We are currently deciding on the most effective model for such exchange; ideally these forums (either open or round table) will include artists from different generations and different countries in the region, working in various mediums. The material gathered during the Front Gallery programme will be deposited in secure and accessible form at a number of central repositories - the Banyan Archive, CCA's Library, University of the West Indies and National Libraries. It will also be made available to a wider public through a variety of media, such as Broadcast TV, Home Video, The Internet, CD-ROM, DVD and traditional paper publishing.

To date the following 12 persons have been interviewed: Black Stalin (Kaisoian), Boscoe Holder (Painter), Carlisle Chang (Painter), Cito Valesquez (Mas Artist), Colin Laird (Architect), Horace Ove (Filmmaker), Oswald Glean Chase (Architect), Neville Jules (Pan Pioneer), Lloyd Best (Economist), Sterling Betancourt (Pan Pioneer), Tony Williams (Pan Pioneer), James Boodhoo (Painter) and Stanley Greaves (Painter).

• Database of Practising Artists from the Caribbean and Caribbean Diaspora
• International Database of Art Scholarships, Bursaries, Workshops and Residencies open to Artists from the Caribbean
• Database of Private and Public Sector Collectors and Commissioning Agencies
• Database of Parallel Institutions Affiliated with the Caribbean Region, (including those who have showing space available for travelling exhibitions and lecture facilities)
• Database of Curators, Writers and Critics Working with Caribbean Artists

CCA Contemporary Arts Programme 2: 1998

CCA hosted five exhibitions over a six-week period from October 27th - December 5th 1998. In collaboration with the National Museum of Port of Spain and the Art Society, CCA hosted three solo exhibitions - Wendy Nanan, Susie Dayal, and Richard ‘Ashraph’ Ramsaran. Additionally, there were visits to artist Eddie Bowen’s studio. The programme closed with a group show entitled, ‘Lip, Sticks & Marks’, which consisted of seven Caribbean artists: Roberta Stoddart (Jamaica), Annalee Davis (Barbados), Osaira Muyale (Aruba), Jocelyn Gardner (Barbados), Alida Martinez (Aruba), and Irenée Shaw and Susie Dayal from Trinidad.

A series of seven public lectures was held with a panel of speakers that included Dr. Yolanda Wood, of the University of Havana, Cuba and Carlos Julio Molina, Venezuela.

Contemporary Arts Programme : 1997

CCA’s first Contemporary Arts Programme took place at the Fernandes Industrial Centre, Laventille, Trinidad - 16th December 1997 to 20th February 1998. There were three solo exhibitions: Che Lovelace, Christopher Cozier and Irénée Shaw; a group show of seven artists, (John Stollmeyer, Zoya Tommy, Dean Arlen, Avellino Reyes, Wendell McShine, Ayodhya Ouditt, Susie Dayal) and a series of five talks that examined issues around their work and contemporary cultural politics.
There was an excellent audience turnout of approximately 2500 visitors, which included artists, critics, and historians who visited from throughout the region to participate in the forums.

Chris Cozier (CAP1)

Irénée Shaw's 'talk' (CAP 1)

(top)

Eddie Bowen (CAP2)

© 2000 Eddie Bowen

Richard 'Ashraph' (CAP2)