Celebrating the works of local artists

Six local artists have created new works strategically installed as artistic interventions on the Barbados Trailway and incorporated into bus shelters in rural, underserved communities around the island.

The artists whose works are being celebrated include Anna Gibson, who has provided artwork for the rain shelter; Dion Gibson and Anya Greaves who provided artwork for the benches on the Trailway.

The bus shelters will be situated in St John, St George, and St Andrew with a series of new works created by Joshnua Clarke, Versia Harris, and Amelia Rouse.

The collection of artistic interventions project, a collaboration between The Fresh Milk Art Platform, Future Centre Trust, Environ Ltd (Adopt A Stop Barbados) and The Healing Arts Initiative in partnership with Culturunners, was launched at the Carmichael/Trailway crossing on the Barbados Trailway Saturday evening.

During the launch, founding director of the Fresh Milk Art Platform, Annalee Davis, explained that in May 2021, New York based Heidi Holder, a committee member of the Future is Unwritten, a group dedicated to exploring the powerful role of art and artists in society reached out to Fresh Milk to share information about the Healing Arts Initiative established by Culturunners and the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Arts & Health Programme in 2020.

The initiative forms part of the United Nations’ 75th Anniversary Programme (UN75), as a cultural call to action in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on societal mental health.

The future is Unwritten has since grown into a global campaign advocating for improved physical, mental and social health. Fresh Milk is one of the several projects they have supported including others in Iraq, Sudan, Yemen, United States of America, United Kingdom, India, and South Africa.

“The Future is Unwritten programme invited Fresh Milk to think about how we could work with art and artists to promote community and well-being in the context of Barbadian society,” Davis said.

“This was at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing and Barbados was reeling from the eruption of the volcano in St Vincent followed by a category one hurricane.”

Davis noted that Trailway was chosen for the artistic intervention, given its close proximity to Fresh Milk and also for its unique features, including the fact that it is a “beautiful tract of land running through the St George Valley”.

She said while Barbados has been blessed with many beaches where locals can recreate, there seem not to be enough variety of safe outdoor recreational activities for young people and families, adding that the pandemic and volcanic eruption reminded Barbadians about the value of green spaces and the natural environment to enhance physical, mental and spiritual wellness.

“And we were interested in fostering a linear outdoor exhibition opportunity allowing Bajan artists to engage with this location and foster more awareness of this historic easement open to all Barbadian and their families.

“Healing Arts also wanted us to think about expanding the project to include placing solar bus shelters into underserved communities. We settled on three locations at Barclays Park, Four Roads and Gun Hill which is an extension of this outdoor art project,” she said.

Chairman of the Future Centre Trust Barney Gibbs said that in light of the Trust ongoing Trailway Project, he was pleased that a section of the historical space was chosen to showcase the works of talented artists.

“By showcasing our talented artists on the Trailway, we enliven the space, we give it colour and soul and we make it more compelling showing that it is a space not just for exercising and commuting,” Gibbs said. (AH)