By Brooke Glasford
The Fashioning Change column was birthed by my interest at the cross sections of the creative industries, business and technology; and it will continue there because with every passing year that sweet spot only gets more interesting to me. In the throes of International month of women, I came acorss a woman who is at the precipice of business, technology and the arts, and is burning a path that is so incredibly interesting you can’t look away.
To preface this feature we must talk about the overarching effect that the creative industries—in this case visual arts—has on culture. I believe that Guyanese by nature, are a very creative, innovative people, and that pairing births a resourcefulness that can be seen across the nation. What we often lack, are opportunities to monetize and expose our ingenuity—so it is always amazing to me when I see people apply new tactics in old industries to get unimaginable results.
In perusing Instagram I happened across a page @FineArt.GY, its descriptor caught my attention, an Online Art Gallery. These three words alone piqued my interest and I began following the business. This virtual gallery is what it says it is, is completely online, and with no physical location they have been able to grow, nurture and support a pool of artists that , otherwise, would be on their own.
(FineArt.gy logo, image via Instagram)
Fine Art GY isn’t just a social media account that posts artists’ work, but through their website fineart.gy, they build community and connect local art with buyers around the world, brokering sales and ensuring artists names and work get to the right people. The founder Sade Barrow- Brown, is a graphic artist and business woman and in her current position as Creative Director of Intellect Storm, is able to use her expertise, experience and business acumen to foster an eco-system for growth within the visual arts.
(Sade Barrow-Brown, image via Instagram)
The gallery supports the shows of artists that are a part of the community, including photographer Travon Barkers’, The Butterfly Effect, and are the place to follow to keep your finger on the pulse of art shows and events in Guyana. She has also partnered with attorney Ayanna McAlman for virtual presentations and workshops on Intellectual Property & Guyana—a topic that the vast majority of creators in Guyana need more knowledge about.
Fine Art GY has shown itself as a uniter of the art world and those who don’t even recognize they need it. In my research for this article I found that Barrow-Brown was a part of the first cohort to be awarded the Creative Industries Grant from the Ministry of Culture Youth & Sports in support of Fine Art GY. Barrow-Browns ability to foster relationships and provide local visual artists with the support, direction, and of great importance, sales, is a signifier of the positive direction the creative industries is headed with pioneers, like herself, at the helm.
