Alissandra Cummins & Allison Thompsonet al. : Art in Barbados - What Kind of Mirror Image?

This book examines the work of Barbadian artists over six decades, from the period of the 1930s which was dominated by the Eurocentric perspective, to the challenging voice of Afro-Barbadian youth of the 1990s. It represents a fist attempt to provide a framework for the conceptualization and interpretation of Barbadian art and serves to correct the ethnocentric image of Barbados as a culturally deficient community. The two opening chapters, "Right little, tight little island" and "Island in the Sun", focus on the work of the pioneer artists and their struggle to establish themselves in a conservative Barbadian society still dominated by the remnants of the old plantocracy. Chapters three and four examine the decades following the 1950s which witnessed an influx of expatriate artists whose work was to influence the local art movement, even as young Barbadian nationals were leaving the country to seek professional training overseas. The final two chapters examine the work of these young returning artists and the organisation and development of the art industry in response to the changing perspective of both artist and art market. The result is an evolving indigenous Bajan vision now recognised and respected internationally.