Bobby Fernandes was a multifaceted person whose fundamental charac-teristics were witnessed, enjoyed and appreciated by all who came into contact with him regardless of their station in life. In this respect, he was undoubtedly humanitarian in outlook and practice. He was a very perceptive intuitive person of a humorous disposition. I will, however, in this writing be only concerned with his achievements in the Creative Arts.
I was associated with Bobby and fraternal twin Billy both at Sacred Heart School and at Saints later in 1957. I took students camping and one camp suggested by Bobby was spent at his dad’s timber concession near Sand Hills on the Demerara River. I left Guyana to study in the UK and on my return we made contact. It was the beginning of a firm and lasting friendship. At the time he was working at John Fernandes Ltd, the family business but spent his spare time “straying about in the bush,” as we say, in his trusty Toyota Land Cruiser. “Ever since I was a schoolboy I have been fascinated by the natural beauty of Guyana.” Over the years he covered the hinterland and took photographs on a cheap “point and shoot” camera as we called it. He said that he took photos because people did not believe the things he described.
I was impressed by his sensibility and command of composition. Having pointed this out to him I suggested getting a better camera and the possibility of holding an exhibition. He was understandably nervous but did agree. Frames I designed were made by the Company’s woodworker, Griffith, who was very pleased to be engaged in an unusual project. Installing the photos in their frames took place one evening in the Art Room at Queen’s College, where I was then teaching. We were ably assisted by Eno, one of the company employees, who was his right hand man. We smelled smoke and located the origin in one of the laboratories. The Headmaster was awakened and his questioning was cut short by Eno’s colourful language to send for the fire brigade. The first exhibition, which was held at the United States Information Services Gallery, South of St. George’s, was well attended and Bobb received orders for prints that found their way into homes, offices and other locations.
Themes ranged from epic panoramic views of rivers and mountains to mosses and lichens on trees and rocks. Dennis Williams disagreed when I said that the latter could be compared with abstract expressionist paintings. I knew of artists who based work on attractive images produced by electron microscopes and understood the nature of his objection. Bobby’s themes existed independently and no technical expertise in painting was needed. Such expertise, however, is of no use if both imagination and intelligent use of perception are not brought into play. Bobby was obviously gifted in this respect, which any landscape artist working would recognise. As a matter of fact, artists began painting exact copies of his photos, with the most popular being two tree stumps in the Rupununi River. I even saw one in a beer garden in Kitty.
Unlike professional practice, Bobby set his camera on automatic and did not make multiple shots from different angles. Every frame in a roll of film contained a single image – a remarkable achievement. Bobby held several exhibitions over the years, but one that really stood out was based on photos taken of about sixty birds seen around Georgetown and its environs. The show was held at Castellani House and he seemed to catch each bird at a moment that made it a personality and not only a member of a species. The macaw with a small coconut in its claws looked as if it was attending a cocktail party.
Years later, Bobby decided that he wanted to publish a book – 99 BEST. When I asked why 99, he said everyone else uses 100 best of whatever. The selection process was difficult because of the quality of each work, but we categorised them into Landscapes, Flora and Fauna and People and Culture.
Bobby’s perception allowed him to analyse his experiences and those of others, adding embellishments from his productive imagination. You would laugh at his conclusions, which often made you revise your own perceptions. He reminded me of Nasruddin, the Sufi storyteller and creator of absurdities, each containing a moral lesson. I felt that Bobby was like a reincarnated court jester from the Middle Ages. It took me three years to convince him to write short stories, which he did over a period of time beginning in 1994 and, to quote him, “The others were written intermittently over the next fourteen years.” Bobby relished seeing the immediate effect of his stories on listeners and rightly felt that writing would not have the same effect. Whether spoken or written, I said that his often witty and pointed conclusions would still be evidenced and enjoyed.
The result was Short and Sweet – a most remarkable achievement. This collection, ranging from the empathetic to the ludicrous reveals the nature of the Guyanese psyche in a truly remarkable way through colourful characters from all sections of the society, each responding to the circumstances in which they find themselves. They absolutely leap from the page – The Politician, The Short Story Writer, The Bogus Rastafarian. Other stories, mythological in form like The Strange Tribe, The Old Tree, and The Hunter, were based on pathos. I was dumbfounded when Short and Sweet did not win the Guyana Prize in Literature and would now strongly suggest a reprint. In my opinion, and those of others as well, it is still the best collection of local short stories. It remains my confirmed opinion that it should be on the reading list in all educational institutions and other locations, including homes and even offices. It is a book that students of sociology would find quite instructive in studying the nature of the Guyanese people.
In 1994, Bobby wrote his first poem. He later stated that “…it had been a closely guarded secret and I had never recited any kind of poetry before in public.” That was until he was encouraged by his nephew, Phillip, after which he took the giant leap into performance poetry. He read them at the monthly open mic poetry sessions held at Upscale Restaurant in Hincks Street, an incentive he felt for young poets.
Like the short stories, the poems present themes based on nature and people. In the table of contents there are twenty-three poems grouped under the title Nature:
The sound of silence is the secret language,
waking dreams of nature and contentment.
To learn the lessons of a clamorous world
we must garner the wisdom of its silence.
Twenty-one are listed under The Human Condition:
Higher on the step of learning
I see deeper into these naked souls.
Women rule the world of watching
as absent men seek tools to break
the cycle of the children of the steps.
I felt that Bobby’s poems took us into realms bordering on the philosophical and spiritual, providing insights into another aspect of his character.
Of undoubted major importance to Bobby was his total love for and dedication to Luana his wife and their children along with his respect and support for their dreams and aspirations. It was an extremely moving experience witnessing this again in the presentations of his children, Tina, Robert, Damian, Nicolette, Dominic and Shad at his funeral service.
There was one aspect of his character that I profoundly respect and that is his concern for helping others, elders in particular, in any sort of need. There are names that escape me now but I can still picture them and where he went to pay visits. I remember going with him in a van in the wards of south Georgetown looking for fellows interested in football and taking them to and from the Georgetown Football Club grounds. Luana had a washing machine that was used to clean the team uniforms and Bobby asked friends in Canada to send cartons of shoes, “any size is a fit” he told them. His supervision of the details of home care for my Mother while I was in Barbados is a point in case. It is difficult to really repay such actions unless it is to follow his example. After her funeral I told him that during her last days he was more of a son to her than I had been. My comment was dismissed with a shrug of his shoulders as something else was discussed.
Martin Carter would describe Bobby as a real human being, a humanist without reservation who deeply loved his country and its people. I have coined the word “Guyanist” to describe him and all others who manifest the same attitudes. While I would not describe him as a spiritualist there is no doubt that spiritual values determined the quality of his relationship to others as well as the activities that occupied his attention during his life over the years.
For me and my family, it was indeed both privilege and blessing to have had Bobby as a real loyal friend. May the Soul and Spirit of Robert “Bobby” Fernandes forever rest in peace.
