Gallery to open multimedia exhibition
Harold’s Picky Head Boy by Gordon Solomon
(CNS Local Life): The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands (NGCI) newest exhibition, “Mediating Self – Identity and the Body”, opens Friday, 30 June and will run through Thursday, 21 September. Curated by Kerri-Anne Chisholm, NGCI’s assistant curator, the exhibition investigates the ways in which our bodies are used to create and navigate our personal and collective identities.
Drawing on works from the NGCI Permanent Art Collection, the Cayman Islands National Museum, the Cayman National Cultural Foundation, and private collections, the artwork highlights different aspects of individual and collective identities, and span a timeline of more than 40 years of art production, stated an NGCI press release.
Artwork in the exhibition ranges from drawings, lithographs, watercolour and pastel on paper, paintings on canvas and board, and sculptural works, to photography and video installations.
Taking direction from traditional portraiture, the show considers the functions of the human body in artwork such as historical documentation, biography, memorial, and identification functions. The artwork is grouped into two main categories, self-reflection, and work and social life. Within these categories the exhibition draws out further discussions of familial expectations, and cultural and social practices, along with work and the evolution of careers and gender.
“The way that we portray ourselves is a nonverbal statement,” Chisholm explained. “The human body expresses statements of race, gender, religion, sexuality and ethnicity. Our bodies communicate signals. Our dress choice, language and very presentation of our bodies actively express our sense of self.
“Within occupations, social and familial responsibilities, affiliations and expectations held we construct and navigate our identities. Multiple identities are necessary and are constructed both consciously and unconsciously.”
Within the exhibition visitors will find an educational space designed for kids and families. The space includes videos on the history of portraiture from traditional oil paintings to modern digital selfies, interactive artworks, and a timeline of significant artists and art historical portraits. The family space is designed to provide children of all ages with information that they can then use to engage with the larger exhibition.
For more information about memberships, special lectures, workshops and family programmes related to the exhibition, go to the National Gallery website
Category: Visual Arts
