AGM Presents: Contemporary Jamaican Art, circa 1962 | circa 2012

July 17, 2012

Uncategorized

In celebration of Jamaica`s 50th anniversary, The Art Gallery of Mississauga hosts Contemporary Jamaican Art, circa 1962 | circa 2012. On August 6th, 1962 Jamaica became an independent nation from Britain. As Canada is a home to many Jamaicans and Jamaican decedents, it`s with pride that Canada help celebrate!

As decedents of Jamaica (our parents are Jamaican, who immigrated to Canada in 1970), it was a pleasure to see this unique collection of art that we’ve never seen before. The exhibit gave us the opportunity to see, learn and connect with the artistic visions of fellow Jamaicans. Canadians also get the chance to see what inspires Jamaican`s culturally. We took in the exhibit opening night last Thursday, curated by Dr. Veerle Poupeye. Peter Chin, multidisciplinary award winning artist, of Kingston, Jamaica, based in Toronto, performed a special presentation created just for this event. Interesting fact? Peter is the cousin of Greta Constantine‘s Stephen Wong! We had a moment to chat with Peter about his involvement with this event.

“The piece is called LEAVE and I created this performance art piece specifically for this event. Dr. Veerle Poupeye requested that I perform based on material she has seen before. Its coming out of the visual arts tradition. Every aspect of this performance was created by me. Its based on being Jamaican, Jamaica’s independence and and what it means to be Jamaican,” Peter said.

What makes this exhibit is the time periods presented. You can take in the work of 1962 and travel right to 2012 with young artists who live right here in our greater Toronto area. If you appreciate art, you must make a trip to The Art Gallery of Mississauga to see these works for yourself! The stories behind these pieces are just incredible. Check out our Facebook to learn more about some of the amazing pieces. For now, check out some imagery from our trip to the gallery.