On this week’s “Blank Canvas,” we meet Ryan Turnquest, a man drawn back to his art practise to mourn and memorialise the passing of his brother. After obtaining an Associate’s Degree in Art from the College of The Bahamas, Turnquest entered Savannah College of Art and Design in 2007 where he studied Industrial Design but left his studies early to return home to support his children and family in their business.
Continuing to focus on artists participating in this year’s NE8 (Eighth National Exhibition), NAGB’s Director, Amanda Coulson, is joined this week by artists Margot Bethel and Leanne Russell, both of whose work uses diverse materials, creating immersive or interactive pieces, both of which discuss gender roles or perceptions of gender in our society.
This evening we have a special Blank Canvas episode out of Kingston, Jamaica!! Taping in the musically historic Creative Sounds Studio on Mountain View Road (also notable as being located next to the Artist-in-Residency programme New Local Space/NLS operated by Deborah Anzinger, whose been a guest on the show!), BC host Amanda Coulson, meets with the Director of The National Art Gallery of Jamaica (NGJ), Veerle Poupeye (far left) and Trinidadian artist/curator/writer Christopher Cozier.
Taking over from our regular host, Dr. Ian Bethell-Bennett will be filling on the “Blank Canvas” to interview Charlotte Henay (left) and Dr. Angelique V. Nixon (right), who both have work in the current National Exhibition (N8), which this year includes not only visual artists but also writers and poets.
Continuing our series of shows highlighting Bahamian artists living abroad that are participating in the Eighth National Exhibition (NE8), on this week’s “Blank Canvas” show Amanda gets to listen to the stories of Steven Schmid (far left) and Giovanna Swaby (second from right), who both recently graduated with a BFA in Film, Video and Integrated Media from Emily Carr University in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Tamika Galanis, who recently graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in Documentary and Experimental Arts from Duke University.
In the studio with Amanda, this week are agitators and researchers, Hilary Booker and Jon Murray, whose intellectual and research endeavours cross over with artistic practice, leaning into the area of what is now called “social sculpture.”
This Wednesday’s “Blank Canvas” sees the beginning of a series of shows focussing on the participating artists in the new National Exhibition NE8, opening this Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m. at Villa Doyle (NAGB) and Hillside House on Saturday evening at 6 p.m. The Eighth National Exhibition is an exhibition featuring the works of over 60 artists, facilitators, and poets, who were asked to create work that addressed their current thoughts and discourse as citizens of The Bahamas and the world
Visiting The Bahamas from the U.S is Stephanie Smith, the recently-appointed Chief Curator at the brand new Institute of Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University, which will open in October 2017. She joins host Amanda Coulson on this week’s The Blank Canvas.
In honour of the founding of our University of The Bahamas (UB), the Blank Canvas invited a range of guests into the studio whose vision and creative talent have helped to pave the way for the culture and vision of the new university.
This week’s “Blank Canvas” looks the artistic future of The Bahamas through three local young prize-winning artists: Jordanna Kelly, Navarro Newton and Keith Thompson.