What does fifty look like? How does an institution evaluate its progress towards its original vision and mandate after fifty years? And what legacies does an institution choose to mark its golden milestone as it looks towards the forthcoming fifty years? These are the questions that the National Gallery of Jamaica answers with its fifty year retrospective “Continuity: The Exhibition”. First established on 14 November 1974 at Devon House, the National Gallery has since, in the words of its Acting Senior Director Nadine Boothe-Gooden, served as “a beacon of creativity, a sanctuary for cultural preservation, and a catalyst for societal transformation”1. The institution boasts a reputation of being the oldest and largest national art museum established in the English-speaking Caribbean2 and the sheer weight of that title marks this golden jubilee as a milestone in not only Jamaican art, but Caribbean art at large.
“Continuity: The Exhibition” builds on the seminal exhibition “In Retrospect: Forty Years of the National Gallery of Jamaica” which, as its name suggests, was a forty year retrospective held in 2014 that articulated the NGJ’s institutional role in the development of Jamaica’s art historical narratives. “Continuity” is not merely a reiteration of its predecessor, but instead is meant to “create juxtapositions between past exhibition projects and expand on the concepts and narratives originally explored”3. As an integral cultural institution, the NGJ’s role goes beyond merely documenting, displaying and preserving Jamaica’s artistic heritage, but also involves expanding narratives of the Jamaican experience to reflect the actual lived experiences, feelings, ideas, and concerns of Jamaicans.
As I reflect on the “Continuity” exhibition, and contemplate the overarching meta-narratives that the NGJ proffers on its fiftieth anniversary, what resonates with me most is the ingenuity, resourcefulness, versatility, and sheer brilliance of the featured women artists. Of the forty-seven artists featured in this milestone exhibition, which serves as both a retrospective and a glimpse of future prospects, only thirteen were women (less than a third). The highlighted women artists were Deborah Anzinger, Kereina Chang Fatt, Katrina Coombs, Di-Andre Caprice Davis, Monique Gilpin, Miriam Hinds-Smith, Berette Macaulay, Petrona Morrison, Ebony G. Patterson, Tanya Shirley, Jasmine Thomas-Girvan, the British-born Prudence Lovell, and the artist referred to not by her own name but instead by her marital status, “Mrs. Lionel Lee”.
The women artists were outnumbered by their male counterparts but by no means were they outdone. Rather, the “Continuity” exhibition, just like Jamaican society itself, was resoundingly upheld by the robust spirits of women. From Anzinger’s metaphysical pontification of the familiar and the unfamiliar, to Morrison’s commanding and deeply reverent altarpieces, and even Davis’ psychedelic eccentricity that alerts us to the ominous and unpromising future that climate change has in store, the women artists were thought-provoking, experimental, and quite memorable. The women’s artistry spanned across various creative modalities, mediums and techniques ranging from traditional painting, digital painting, mixed media assemblages, finger-knitted fibre installations, photography, poetry, multimedia installations, and video.
Most of the works from women shown in this “Continuity” exhibition were previously shown in “Explorations 3: Seven Women Artists”, an exhibition meant to question “whether notions about women’s art are still relevant in the Jamaican context”4. Nine years since the “Seven Women Artists” exhibition and the question of the relevance, as well as the visibility and the celebration, of women artists within Jamaica’s art historical narratives remain quite pertinent. Despite being marginalized within the institutional space, Jamaican women artists have exuded boldness and inventiveness that demand greater attention. As the NGJ celebrates fifty years of its “commitment to artistic excellence, cultural heritage, and social impact”5, and as it looks forward to the next fifty years, I anticipate a greater investment in and expansion of women’s artistry in Jamaica.
Written By Kevarney K.R.
Kevarney K.R. is a multidisciplinary artist, research academic, writer and independent curator whose work directly engages with the historico-political narratives of Black existence within the postcolonial Caribbean context. Kevarney is currently a senior researcher at The Institute for Gender and Development Studies, UWI Mona Unit, a UNESCO Transcultura Scholar, and is completing a critical art writing mentorship program facilitated by Pérez Art Museum Miami’s Caribbean Cultural Institute and Contemporary &. Kevarney is also a founding member of the Journal of Jamaican Art, an independent peer-reviewed journal committed to documenting and critically engaging with Jamaican art.
To keep updated on Kevarney’s journalistic work you can follow him on Instagram: @jamaicajournalofart
Dedicated to the development of Jamaican art in a multitude of facets, the National Gallery of Jamaica has collaborated with Jamaica Art Society (JAS) to give voice to budding art writers.
Following the success of the JAS’ three-day Critical Art Writing workshop hosted at the NGJ in April of this year the NGJ is pleased to provide a platform for the continued practice of these new writers.
- Nadine Boothe-Gooden. (2024). “Continuity: The Exhibition” exhibition catalogue. The National Gallery of Jamaica. Page 1.
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︎ - Veerle Poupeye. (2014). “In Retrospect: 40 Years of The National Gallery of Jamaica” exhibition catalogue. The National Gallery of Jamaica. Page 2.
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︎ - O’Neil Lawrence. (2024). “Continuity: The Exhibition” exhibition catalogue. The National Gallery of Jamaica. Page 2.
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︎ - Veerle Poupeye. (2015). “Explorations 3: Seven Women Artists” exhibition catalogue. The National Gallery of Jamaica. Page 2.
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︎ - Nadine Boothe-Gooden. (2024). “Continuity: The Exhibition” exhibition catalogue. The National Gallery of Jamaica. Page 1.
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