Dear Editor,
Visual Arts in Guyana is no longer a hobby. I certainly believe that the recent revival of the Guyana Visual Arts Competition – the equivalent of the Guyana Prize for Literature – will effect a renaissance of interest and practice in a discipline which seemed to have fallen dead because of the lack of interest shown by the National Wheelmen.
This imperative undertaking, the revival, is under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport headed by Dr Frank Anthony, and is to be mounted biennially, I have heard. And all those responsible for this worthy venture need to be lauded.
Not solely by myself, but also by the many others who are encouraged by the revival of this event which was introduced by the Forbes Burnham administration. The enthusiastic response shown attests to the fact that the support is long overdue.
One could also observe that not everyone can be an artist. Only an artist has the means of illustrating and demonstrating the success and grandeur of a developing nation. Artists are the ready recorders of history. They document the periods of time in which they live.
They can cause to resonate within the minds of others the profound intangibles of time and place; they can bring back memories that stir the imagination. So it is, that no society can function and be successful without the presence of the artist.
A couple of years ago when I came to Guyana I was highly displeased by the fact that many gifted artists were forced to migrate to other countries where artistic efforts were appreciated and encouraged. Some took to other professions to make a living. Artists became carpenters, masons, and photographers. The lack of encouragement had become shameful. Who has ever looked at a painting and not had an internal sense of rhythm – a perceptual, intellectual relief after a day of stress? Artists are important facets in every society. And so I say again that this move by the present administration should be commended by artists and laypersons alike.
As an artist myself, I would like to see the next endeavour of the present government being the acquisition of works by major artists, to be housed in a permanent National Gallery of Guyanese Art. I am also happy to see something like an archive (Database) being compiled for future reference and study.
Yours faithfully,
Jorge Bowenforbes
