'Zippy' Frazier and Sons perform in Andros style
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Nassau, Bahamas - Doongalik Studios
Art Gallery in conjunction in Carter Marketing, The Endowment for the
Performing Arts, the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation and the Ministry
of Youth Sports and Culture is proud to announce their free Lecture
Series every Thursday from 6-9 pm during the month of October to complement
the present Exhibition of these two Bahamian icons. The first lecture
featured presentations by Fred Ferguson and Charles Carter to a stand
room only crowd and was capped off by the melodious sounds of ‘Zippy’
Frazier and Sons from Andros.
Fred Ferguson demonstrates the guitar genius of Joseph Spence
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The Exhibition,
which opened to an appreciative crowd on October 1st, was mounted in
celebration of the 100th birthday of Joseph “Youngie Spence”
and the 40th anniversary of the release of Tony McKay’s
classic album ‘Exuma’. Curated by Orchid Burnside, a former intern
at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. the Exhibition features
a panoply of memorabilia relating to both artists.
“We were
amazed at the wealth of information available mostly internationally
on both of these artists,” stated Ms Burnside. “They are highly
respected all over the world and yet here in The Bahamas, the home of
their birth, they are hardly known and certainly not celebrated. This
Exhibition aims to remedy that.”
Charles Carter addresses the audience
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Along with
extensive newspaper and magazine articles, album covers, music reviews,
video footage and music the Exhibition also has a fantastic array of
photographs particularly of Joseph Spence courtesy of Guy Droussart
a Belgian photographer and musician, who traveled to The Bahamas in
the 1970’s to photograph and record Spence and his family. Droussart
has spent his lifetime collecting information on his hero and was extremely
pleased to know that the artist was being celebrated in such a fashion.
Spence’s family was out in grand numbers at the Opening. Charles Carter
stated, “The Youngie & Exuma exhibit happily exceeds even my expectations
that were sky high to begin with. See it often. Take the kids“. Fred
Ferguson agreed adding “it is long overdue for recognition to be given
to these two great artistic icons of the Bahamas and I hope that this
opens the door for the further recognition and appreciation for many
of our unsung artistic giants.“
The appreciative crowd listens intently
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Another amazing
aspect of the Exhibition is the collection of 41 paintings by Tony ‘Exuma’
McKay that was kindly loaned by a variety of collectors. “Most people
have no idea that Tony was a painter as well,” stated Jackson Burnside.
“He was quite prolific and we are happy to have such a variety of
his work on display. The Exhibition took weeks of research and it is
a new experience for Doongalik to mount a show of this type but it gave
me goose bumps as it came together – these men deserve to be celebrated
on an ongoing basis – if we fail to celebrate our own, others will
own them - so we are bringing them back home and encourage everyone
to come out to see it, particularly the school children.”
The Exhibition
will be on display until Thursday, November 4. For further information
contact the Gallery at 394-1886 or email
doongalikart@batelnet.bs
.