amjamin

Creativity, it is said, is all about thinking out of the box, making the imagination soar and letting the free spirits take over. What if the proverbial box were chopped with a chainsaw? This menacing tool, which has inspired many gory, blood-oozing horror flicks, has taken a creative dimension in the hands of Gilbert Nicely and his daughter, Casie Nicely, carving out rustic furniture from driftwood, tree stumps, and barks. "I never felt intimated by the chainsaw," said Casie Nicely, "and when Daddy gave me a chance to use it, I felt that I was in control." This tool of the trade is a legacy that was passed on from father to daughter. "I saw my dad using the chainsaw. He made bowls and baskets," Casie said. "He showed me the techniques to hold the stumps between the feet and use the chainsaw to carve." She was 16 then, and there has been no looking back since. Her father, who is 76 this year, has been in the trade for 40 years....

Professor Du Juemin “It is a feeling that flows from deep inside,” says Professor Du Juemin, classical Chinese painter, calligrapher and a poet, as he held his hands out as if to absorb energy fields floating in the air. The spiritual energies guide Du Juemin, an exponent of the minimalist and the simplistic traditional Chinese painting, to capture life’s story in monochrome. Speaking in Mandarin, his thoughts were translated by Ying Ping Liang, lecturer of Chinese at Confucius Institute, University of the West Indies, Mona. “The use of monochrome is from the Buddhist ideology of minimalism and the fact that all colours evolve from black and white,” explained Du Juemin, who is visiting Jamaica as artist in residence at Confucius Institute. The neutrality in his works, he said, is a very noble style of painting and a formidable medium of expression. Du Juemin’s paintings are a confluence of visual and written thought process – a symphony of poetry with delicate brush stroke...

“Ikebana can be done anywhere by anyone. There are no national or ethnic boundaries. Like flowing water or drifting clouds, Ikebana spreads throughout the world ... ,” is a petal from the diary of Kadensho, The Book of Flowers by Sofu Teshigahara, the first Iemoto, or grand master of the Sogetsu School, who is credited with revolutionising Ikebana, the traditional Japanese flower arranging. Like the whiff of fresh flowers or the timeless beauty of nature, Teshigahara’s words and craft have transcended boundaries over the years. “Ikebana is traditional, but not bound by traditions,” says Joy Jones, head of Sogetsu School in Jamaica. “The rules are benchmarks but not binding,” Jones added. “It is up to the interpretation and the creative acumen of the person. Practise with scenes around you and the materials available to you.” Ikebana, which literally means living flower, like all time-honoured traditions of Japan, is not the regular flower arrangement. It is bound by rules, work ...

Hues of the yellow light dispersed on the hollow eyes of the Zemi, standing like a warrior enclosed in a glass frame, the large eye sockets of the mahogany figurine holds centuries of Jamaica's history buried in them. The Zemi, which were worshipped by the Taino, are part of the selection of the rich heritage housed in the Art in Jamaica, c. 1000-c. 1900 section at National Gallery of Jamaica in downtown Kingston. "These (artefacts) are priceless and (are a) deep-rooted representation of Jamaica's history," said Monique Barnett-Davidson, curatorial assistant in the education department at the National Gallery. The diversity of the exhibits - like the country's motto 'Out of Many, One People' is a confluence of cultures - commencing from the early Taino artefacts made of wood, chiselled into the early Spanish-Persian influence in limestone, dissipating on to canvas in geometrical perfection and symmetrical symphony. This artistic journey ...