5 min read

Fresh, exciting and forward-thinking are 3 words that best describe the recent CaFa 2021 Non-Traditional art exhibition. The CaFa Fair is all about celebrating the important contribution of Caribbean visual artists and the key role that Caribbean art is playing, and that is exactly what this event did. It was laudable to see this event take the form of an online self-navigating 3D display, and a physical exhibit held at The Art Splash Centre on the beautiful south coast of Barbados. After perusing the online version at www.caribbean.global, we definitely had to check out the creative works of Brandon k. Best, Housing Area, Sydney McConney, Akilah Watts, John Alleyne, and Alex Gibson in person.

Upon arrival, I was warmly greeted by Zoe Osborne, the amazing curator, and director from Mahogany Culture as she began to show me around the space. It wasn’t a huge exhibit but the artwork brought the room to life. Brandon’s work immediately caught my attention due to its size and colours that would look great on the walls of any modern home. I then turned my attention to Housing Area’s series of relatable characters as they were getting ready for a Barbadian-styled party cruise. How creative! Up next was the work of Akilah Watts and I must admit that her attention to detail in painting is nothing short of incredible. We then popped over to Alex’s work and I pondered upon it for a few minutes trying to figure out if certain elements were intentional. Alex is quite intriguing. As for John, I remembered his piece “Raggamuffin” from online and admired the inclusion of the hidden faces within it. However, there was one particular artist’s work that appealed to me the most, and I kept coming back to it time and time again.

I was most drawn to the work of Sydney McConney with her popular series of pieces entitled “Sex”, “After sex”, and even  “God is watching” but what’s even more incredible was the fact that I actually got to meet and converse with her as she shared her personal views of the overall 5 piece PVC digital print creation. After being drawn in for about 5 minutes, everything began to make sense. I quickly realized that the blue-haired character in the images represented Sydney as I’ve got a keen eye for details and noticed that she had the same buffalo tattoo on her leg. How cool is that? Without a doubt, this made me appreciate her work even more.

Overall, it was a great day as we also got to meet designer and model Eric from @broqueboi while he took in the artwork of these outstanding artists. Going forward, we can definitely say that the face of art is changing, and the future of art in Barbados is very bright. We’d like to thank CaFa for its continued dedication to these up-and-coming artists and we definitely wish these 6 individuals all the best in the near future.

I am happy with the turnout and the support for this exhibition and I am grateful to CaFA for this platform to highlight the diversity in Barbadian talent without limitation and censorship. I hope that there will be more opportunities like this for creatives on the island.

Zoe Osborne

Curator, Mahogany Culture

What do you think about the exhibit? Comment and tell us below.

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Fresh, exciting and forward-thinking are 3 words that best describe the recent CaFa 2021 Non-Traditional art exhibition. The CaFa Fair is all about celebrating the important contribution of Caribbean visual artists and the key role that Caribbean art is playing, and that is exactly what this event did. It was laudable to see this event take the form of an online self-navigating 3D display, and a physical exhibit held at The Art Splash Centre on the beautiful south coast of Barbados. After perusing the online version at www.caribbean.global, we definitely had to check out the creative works of Brandon k. Best, Housing Area, Sydney McConney, Akilah Watts, John Alleyne, and Alex Gibson in person.

Upon arrival, I was warmly greeted by Zoe Osborne, the amazing curator, and director from Mahogany Culture as she began to show me around the space. It wasn’t a huge exhibit but the artwork brought the room to life. Brandon’s work immediately caught my attention due to its size and colours that would look great on the walls of any modern home. I then turned my attention to Housing Area’s series of relatable characters as they were getting ready for a Barbadian-styled party cruise. How creative! Up next was the work of Akilah Watts and I must admit that her attention to detail in painting is nothing short of incredible. We then popped over to Alex’s work and I pondered upon it for a few minutes trying to figure out if certain elements were intentional. Alex is quite intriguing. As for John, I remembered his piece “Raggamuffin” from online and admired the inclusion of the hidden faces within it. However, there was one particular artist’s work that appealed to me the most, and I kept coming back to it time and time again.

I was most drawn to the work of Sydney McConney with her popular series of pieces entitled “Sex”, “After sex”, and even  “God is watching” but what’s even more incredible was the fact that I actually got to meet and converse with her as she shared her personal views of the overall 5 piece PVC digital print creation. After being drawn in for about 5 minutes, everything began to make sense. I quickly realized that the blue-haired character in the images represented Sydney as I’ve got a keen eye for details and noticed that she had the same buffalo tattoo on her leg. How cool is that? Without a doubt, this made me appreciate her work even more.

Overall, it was a great day as we also got to meet designer and model Eric from @broqueboi while he took in the artwork of these outstanding artists. Going forward, we can definitely say that the face of art is changing, and the future of art in Barbados is very bright. We’d like to thank CaFa for its continued dedication to these up-and-coming artists and we definitely wish these 6 individuals all the best in the near future.

I am happy with the turnout and the support for this exhibition and I am grateful to CaFA for this platform to highlight the diversity in Barbadian talent without limitation and censorship. I hope that there will be more opportunities like this for creatives on the island.

Zoe Osborne

Curator, Mahogany Culture

What do you think about the exhibit? Comment and tell us below.