I is Another

I went to the Part one and two of the ‘I is Another’ art showcase at the New Art Exchange, hoping to find some form of inspiration for my MA project. At the showcase, they had quite a few artists from Jamaica exhibiting their work. The artwork was interesting but it was a different type of art to what I prefer. In the first show, I really enjoyed a short video film called ‘Ring di Alarm’. Even though the film focused on a modern Jamaica, there were still some factors that linked to my ideas for my project . In ‘Ring di Alarm’, there was a scene where a couple were dancing to lover’s rock music  and the colours they used to highlight the dance scene were so beautiful and sensual. The colours really evoked an emotion that matched the music and you felt the intimacy between the couple as they danced. It was really breath taking! This video reminded me of a music video by singer Sade called ‘Babyfather’ that was shot in Jamaica. It had a calm, dreamy and sensual feeling to it, the video also reflected  the songs mood which I thought was brilliant.

Another music video was ‘Girl on Fire’  by Alicia Keys, who was  inspired by the Caribbean culture  and the video had a similar vibe to Sade’s video ‘Babyfather’ . The colours and emotion felt the same . I want to try and create this emotional connection within my garments. I want my colours and textures to tell a story and draw you in emotionally. Also, I love the way the way the colours are put together to tell a story. I also want this in my collection.

While at the show, there was an artist called Peter Dean Richards and I loved his work particularly the message behind it. The thing I really enjoyed was the political aspect of his work which is inspired by the UK artist Banksy. I loved how raw his work was and how rough it looked. I want to try and emulate this in my work. I don’t  want my work to look too rough and raw because that’s not what the people on the Windrush were about. However, the conditions that they faced once in the UK were similar.

Here are a few images from the show: