All posts by admin

From the Collection: Dave Smith, Let Us Prey, 1984-86

24 July 2017 Articles

By Natalie Willis. The title is undoubtedly provocative given the Bahamian bent toward Christianity, but “Let Us Prey” (1984-86) is, quite literally, a gift. Donated by Dave Smith in 2007, the work is at once an act of good faith, while simultaneously critical of bad. It’s another painting from the National Collection that we have given some gentle care to and put on display for the current Permanent Exhibition, “Revisiting An Eye For The Tropics,” and fits into the theme of the Bahamian Everyday that works within this exhibition.

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Studio Visit: Lavar Munroe. Finding New Meaning to a Familiar Space

24 July 2017 Interviews

By Keisha Oliver. Interdisciplinary artist Lavar Munroe grew up in the Grants Town community of Nassau, The Bahamas, and has lived and worked in the United States for over thirteen years. Munroe’s work exists as a reflection of the environment of his upbringing and presents an ongoing critique on contemporary society and its relationships between the people of the ghetto and the ‘Others.’ He maps and celebrates his personal journey of survival and fortitude from the heart of the ‘Over-the-Hill,’ community whilst confronting broader issues concerning social stereotypes

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From the Collection: “Built on Sand” (2003) by Dionne Benjamin-Smith

19 July 2017 Articles

By Natalie Willis.“Built on Sand,” (2003) by Dionne Benjamin-Smith, is in some ways the sister work to “Bishops, bishops everywhere and not a drop to drink,” (2003). Both works are of the same dimensions, which instantly makes us as viewers try to compare them and view them in the same plane when they are placed near each other, but, it is the critique and use of religion as their subject that makes them read like chapters in a book, feeding into each other and helping to inform a greater whole.

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Blank Canvas with Leasho Johnson and Edrin Symonette

19 July 2017 Podcasts

On Wednesday evening’s “Blank Canvas,” as part of the NAGB’s continuing series of “Double Dutch,” your host Amanda Coulson (NAGB Director, middle) is visited in the studio by Bahamian artist Edrin Symonette (right) and Jamaican artist Leasho Johnson (left), who speak to their individual artistic practices and their collaborative exhibition, opening on Friday night at 7 p.m. “Of Skin and Sand.”

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Art Documenting History: Intersecting complex histories with art

17 July 2017 Articles

By Dr Ian Bethell-Bennett. Art is a well-known document of history.  All types of creative expression chronicle the moment they depict.  Portraits, much like those on display in Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid are examples of this, especially the Goyas, for example.  This column chooses to focus on the interlocking of art and history: “Art History,” its learning and teaching.  So much happens in this somewhat fraught intersection between art and history, especially in a country like ours, where scant attention is paid to culture, except for its commodification and consumption.

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From The Collection: Amos Ferguson’s “Junkanoo Cow Face”

12 July 2017 Articles

By Natascha Vazquez. 

Bahamian artist and icon, Amos Ferguson radiantly portrays the spirit of Junkanoo through an energetic array of repeated imagery and texture in Junkanoo Cow Face – Match Me If You Can, an iconic piece in the Gallery’s National Collection. His interest in flattening the picture plane and depicting a graphic quality to the work is evident in this work, nodding to the style that he became widely known for. Ferguson used colour and repetition of form for impact and clarity. Arrangements of patterns flood his paintings, a visual language closely related to that of Bahamian culture, and in particular Junkanoo.

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From the Collection: ‘Bishops, bishops everywhere and not a drop to drink’ (2003) by Dionne Benjamin-Smith

10 July 2017 Articles

By Natalie Willis.Works dealing with the divine, with Christianity, with the spiritual, are very much rooted in what we consider to be part of our representation of Bahamianness. In looking to the work of Dionne Benjamin-Smith, an artist and graphic designer known for her pithy and no-holds-barred practice – and very informative and inclusive newsletter designed and created by herself and her partner – we can see a proudly proclaimed Bahamian woman who identifies with her Christianity taking acute aim at problems with the way we view religion in our country.

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Blank Canvas: The Bahamian Project

6 July 2017 Podcasts

On this week’s “Blank Canvas,” NAGB Director Amanda Coulson speaks to participating artists in the ongoing photographic opus, “The Bahamian Project” (www.bahamianproject.com), the next leg of which opens on Thursday night at the Central Bank Art Gallery with the participation of 21 photographers, including Guilden M. Gilbert, Jr. (far right) who joins us in the studio tonight, along with the project’s founder/creative director Duke Wells (far left) and founder/project manager Ana-Lisa Wells (middle right).

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Mixed Media Summer Art Camp: Igniting creativity

5 July 2017 Highlights

By Malika. N Pryor-Martin. The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas’ (NAGB) Mixed Media Summer Art Camp (MMSAC), is a program designed with creativity, discovery, and fun in mind – every day. A blend of art exploration and classic camp activity, the MMSAC serves as a space where young people are learning without even knowing it. From the very youngest to the most senior participant, the goal of the camp is to encourage our campers to express the full range of their creative ideas.

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