5 sec SLIDE SHOW of NE5 Exhibition opening on September 3rd, 2010. Photos: Robbin Whachell

Nassau, Bahamas - The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas opened its Fifth National Exhibition (The NE5) with a private showing and reception on September 3rd.  The Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture the Hon. Charles Maynard was in attendance and was shown throughout the exhibit by David A. Bailey, Acting Director of the NAGB and Exhibition Curator, Holly Parotti.

The following is from the NAGB website and describes the Exhibition:

Haiti – Catastrophic magnitude 7.0 earthquake. Chile – Catastrophic magnitude 8.8 earthquake. Turkey  – Catastrophic magnitude 6.0 earthquake. Iceland – Volcanic eruption causes floods and disrupts air travel for weeks. The Gulf of Mexico – 4.9 million barrels of crude oil spilled. Azerbaijan, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Afghanistan – Catastrophic Flooding. Kyrgyzstan and Bangladesh – Landslides displacing people and threatening lives. Pakistan – More than 20 million people injured or homeless due to flooding. Sumatra – Volcano eruption relocates 12,000 people — and all of this in the first 8 months of 2010 alone!

These are just a few examples of the Earth reacting to the burdens and demands we manufacture and place on it. These events are ALL related one way or another to various forms of global climate change. It has been obvious that the planet has been showing us that we should strive to live in harmonious rhythm with nature. Should we choose to ignore the effects of our actions, we will have to accept the potential dire penalties. Because of these and other global events, the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas resolved that for the first time in the Gallery’s existence, its Fifth National Exhibition (also known as “The NE5”) would be a themed exhibition exploring ideas and narratives on issues relating to the 21st century global question of our carbon footprint and climate change. Professional artists of The Bahamas, residing here and abroad, were invited to create work which responded to the theme “The Carbon Footprint: Bahamian Artists’ 21st Century Response to the Environment.”

A carbon footprint is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment and, in particular, on climate change. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases we individually produce in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, transportation, etc. David A. Bailey, Acting Director of the NAGB sites, “It is the intention of the NAGB to explore this area from an artist’s perspective seeing how they use their own unique artistic tools and vision to produce works that look at areas such as urbanization, mobility (cars, planes, boats, etc.), domesticity, personal space(s), landscape, industrialization, natural earth elements, fabricated non-natural elements, etc. that relate to carbon footprint and climate change.”

5 sec SLIDE SHOW of NE5 Exhibition - September 3rd, 2010 Photos: Robbin Whachell

The selected artists of this National Exhibition responded with impressive insight and attentive commentary to circumstances that warrant response and reaction. The collective reaction is also one of record. Thirty-eight (38) artists brought work to the jury that was made up of seven (7) members. Twenty-three (23) pieces out of a possible thirty-six (36) were accepted (63%). Also, there is a balance of gender that was never present in any of the previous National Exhibitions: 12 male artists and 12 female artists (1:1).

The chosen artists of the NAGB’s Fifth National Exhibition are: John Beadle, Sue Bennett-Williams, Dede Brown, Apryl Burrows, John Cox, Blue Curry, Claudette Dean, Jan Elliot, Kendra Frorup, Mick Guy, John B. Gynell, Ken Heslop, Kristaan Ingraham, Kishan Munroe, Lavar Munroe, Susan Moir-Mackay, Lynn Parotti, Dylan Rapillard, Heino Schmid, Natasha Turnquest and Eleanor Whitely. The media spanned the gamut and included found objects and mixed media, paintings, textiles, photography, graphic design, and quilt making.

The Gallery’s National Exhibition is a biannual event where artists of The Bahamas are invited to submit works to a published Call for Artwork. However, this year the Gallery chose to work outside of the historical parameters of the selection process that has been in place since the Inaugural National Exhibition seven years ago. In the past, artists were invited to submit three pieces from their portfolio that had been produced in the past two years. This time they were asked to produce one piece in response to the theme with the objective of raising a social consciousness within our community.

Attendance to these films was compulsory but in no way meant to dictate how the artist would interpret or react to the theme. The two films, Remembering Saro-Wiwa and Home , were profound and exceptionally moving. Remembering Saro-Wiwa is a monument to the activist Ken Saro-Wiwa who was executed because of his campaign against the annihilation caused by the depletion and rape of the Niger Delta by certain oil companies. Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s Home was also presented because of its beautiful aerial cinematography that documented the threat humanity imposes on the planet.

Featured artists from Grand Bahama Island, from left to right: Ken Heslop, Susan Moir Mackay, Alisa Streather, and Claudette Dean. Photo: Robbin Whachell

With the NAGB’s vision to further catapult Bahamian art into the international arena, the Gallery invited two world renowned artists, Janine Antoni and Alfredo Jaar, along with Director of Gasworks UK, Alessio Antoniolli, to be a part of the jury that judged the submissions. By doing this, the NAGB hoped to open the conversation to the international contemporary art platform. “This was not an easy challenge but at the NAGB, we feel that with difficult and complex times, it is important that artists are given the opportunity to respond,” said David Bailey.

Curator Holly Parotti notes,“Arguably, zero impact is a myth. Everything that we do in our daily lives impacts the environment and we leave a carbon footprint. We can choose to continue to ignore issues like the effects of the interconnectedness of climate change and fuel consumption or we can reduce our dependency on materials or processes that endorse and amplify the devastation of our natural resources. By understanding one’s contribution, one can begin to rectify the situation. By reacting, one acknowledges that there is a problem. By discussing, we can determine resolution.”

The artists of the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas’ Fifth National Exhibition, through creative and unique vision, have begun a united exchange about the human impression that is left on the planet. The hope of this exhibition is to enlighten and open the eyes of the Bahamian community so that we question our own impact environmentally and ecologically.

The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas invites the public to its Fifth National Exhibition. The exhibition opened to the public on Saturday, September 4, 2010 and runs until January 31, 2011. Various Artist Talks, Walk-throughs and Public Programmes will be announced throughout the coming months that will support the dialogue created by the artists of the NE5.

The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas is located on West and West Hill Streets and is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 4pm. Exhibition tours are given but require advanced reservation. For more information, you may contact the NAGB at Telephone 328-5800/1 or at email: info@nagb.org.bs or at their website:www.nagb.org.bs.

The Inner Temple Project: Psyche Pollution by Susan Moir Mackay (3rd from right). Photo: Robbin Whachell

The Inner Temple Project:

PSYCHE  POLLUTION by Susan Moir Mackay The Inner Temple Project is situated directly in the center of The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas.  The surrounding gallery is filled with works of art based on The Fifth National Exhibit (NE5) theme of The Carbon Footprint, exploring the impact our activities have on our environment. Using the intimacy of the Inner Temple space, I created an installation that considers the inner human environment that is the recognized source of our external reality.  Contemplating this inner world I was piqued to explore further the idea of ‘sins’ and ‘negative’ emotions and their hidden correlation with the harmful human impact on our environment (Carbon Footprint). Taking the well known 7 cardinal sins as a starting point, I found a fresh perspective on their interpretation from the Pathwork Foundation.  These clear explanations seemed to remove the normal emotive drama of sins. To further explore the relationship between internal emotions and our impact on the natural world, I loosely linked the sins with what I perceived as common issues that seem to infatuate public reality and yet cause a large degree of pollution on this planet:  Violence, Self Image, Judgment, Sex, Pornography, Fear, Structure, Cleanliness, Order, Conformity, Distraction, Objects of Desire, and Guilt.  All contribute, I believe, to pollution of the mind, spirit, body and the natural world.

Cardinal Sin 1—Anger (Violence) I wanted to convey a sense of the initial violent red source of anger that soon becomes perverted into a miasmal  blackness out of which looms the familiar forms of weapons and fist.  Using photocopy images I allude to the fact that all this is in fact a facsimile of reality, existing only in truth in one’s mind.  The anger has condensed into the ubiquitous cold steel of knife and gun—epitomizing violence:  Violence against self, violence against other, and violence against the planet.

Cardinal Sin 2—Envy (Self Image / Judgment) On the wall directly opposite the dark imagery of anger, is an obsessed look at self image.  Exploring the incessant demands, external and internal, for conformity, or expectations of perfection, beauty or sex appeal, that berates us all, I question the measurement for these expectations. It is in truth arbitrary and one in which we will never meet—like the Barbie doll, with its inhuman dimensions that somehow have become a silent paradigm of beauty to be envied and emulated.  Therefore no matter how much we put ourselves under the knife – literally, or under the knife or our own or other people’s expectations, we will never quite reach it.  It is a judgment that is so common it is insidious.  Judgments are made in fraction of a second about ourselves and others,  so constantly and so consistently that there seems to be no reprieve.  Accepting or loving ourselves, others, or the world, exactly as it is, and recognizing the perfect imperfection in it all is unknown in this inner conflict.

Cardinal Sin 3—Lust (Sex / Making Love / Pornography) “Pornography is the attempt to insult sex, to do dirt on it.”—D.H. Lawrence. Body image continues as a theme, in the realm of sex, sexuality and pornography.  An act that is imbued with love has become a place of degradation—misogyny and self-hatred. In Tantric tradition sex is seen as a holy act between two adults irrespective of body shape or age.  Images of humans and the gods show the divine nature of this communion. If our bodies are created such that sex is part of its functioning and making love is vital for life, then why is there a sense of secrecy and judgment surrounding people enjoying the diverse range of their sexuality? Is there a connection between this disgust and hatred for something as natural as our bodies (and their functioning) and the disrespect we show to our planet Earth?

5 sec SLIDE SHOW: Psyche Pollution by Susan Moir Mackay - The Cardinal Sins Photos: Robbin Whachell

Cardinal Sin 4—Greed (Fear) Fear is endemic in society.  Fear causes not only physical ailments but creates a constant state of distrust.  Fear comes in many forms and seems to lurk in the mind neurotically, tickling like unwelcome insects and roaches. The mind seems to catch onto the fear like a ripping hook maiming us with each fearful thought. Fear causes wars—wars against the self, wars against neighbours, and wars against cultures:  It successfully disassociates us from our common humanity.  It creates schisms.  It causes people to become intrinsically selfish, out for themselves against the world.  This attitude impacts the outer world by amplified neglectful destruction and greed.

Cardinal Sin 5—Pride (Structure / Cleanliness / Order/ Conformity) Another virulent aspect of society is the need for compulsive cleanliness, order, structure and sterility.  The natural world is filled with tumbling and verdant wildness imbued with an underlying natural structure we have yet to fully understand. In our fierce need for order, we create rules and order landscapes often against their natures.  We kill off natural bacteria, and whilst cleaning our houses pollute the environment with harmful chemicals—all in order to appear clean—as if stain free and sin free were synonymous.  Cosmetics tempt us with promises of perfection and infallibility.  It is as if by attempting to control and order our bodies and ourselves and our homes to an extreme, we can desist the inevitable chaos of life, and nature.  We judge the hobo for looking dirty as if we have knowledge of the state of his soul. We also make assumptions that someone in clean clothes and a clean car is automatically “good” (even if only as a good consumer). Life, in its elemental form, is not clean and tidy. When we look up to the sky and see the inspiring chaos of clouds that shift and are ever-changing, or look at the beach strewn with seaweed, the natural chaos of Nature become synonymous with the natural chaos of creativity and individualism.  Too ordered an existence inhibits natural flow.

Cardinal Sin 6—Covetousness (Distraction / Objects of Desire) In the corner are pages ripped from my diary, ramblings and arguments within my mind, searching for peace and love, but becoming tangled by expectations, fear, poor self image, anger and moments of compelling self dislike.  Pinned over the apparent insanity of the inner world, are the sweet placebos of civilization….money, the latest iPad® , that fabulous car, or any number of gadgets and objects of desire that distract us from dealing with our inner world.  Does the construction of these objects also negatively impact the environment, from sweat shops to make designer clothes, to mines in The Congo for the necessary minerals to create a PlayStation® PS3?

Cardinal Sin 7—Sloth (Guilt) All the images are connected.  All issues flow into each other and feed each other, and create an endless cycle spiraling outward and affecting our world, creating our external reality.  If all this ‘sin’ exists and influences us, then the concept of its opposite, sinlessness, also exists.  Offering a hint that there are alternatives to these internal dramas is the golden piece swirling up the wall with the word forgiveness—forgiveness from the base sensation of guilt.  Guilt—a silent and menacing chasm filled with all the little unsuccessful moments or things that we shouldn’t have done that quietly influence our individual actions, beliefs, and behaviors—holding us down in the weight of feeling bad.

5 sec SLIDE SHOW: Psyche Pollution by Susan Moir Mackay Photos: Robbin Whachell

The Square and The Circle—Connections The wires on the ceiling connect all the wall pieces together, and flow from forgiveness to the central pendulum.  Hanging over a dark mirror-like circle (representing the unconscious mind) the pendulum is connected to 7 other pendulums that hang over each of the 7 cardinal sins. The circle has quotes from A Course in Miracles surrounding it and contradicts the whole notion of the installation, by stating “There is no sin”.  Also on the square canvas on the floor in the center of the space is a constellation of all the names of people I know and how they connect to each other. It fascinates me to see the unavoidable connection between my life story and those who know me, who at the very least witness my life, but who may also have experienced the very human dilemmas that I share in this piece. Written in red, on top of the names, is an exploration of choice and consequence in my own life—choice and consequence being pivotal to understanding the reality (inner and outer) we live in.  Every choice we make has a direct consequence.  Some choices seem influenced by the silent magnetism of ‘sin’.  A choice to eat unhealthily, for example, may be silently caused by self–hatred, which may be caused by the pressure of expectations to conform. The choice to eat unhealthily may also negatively impact the environment, due to packaging, chemicals, or deforestation (for example, clearing too much land in order to raise more and more cattle for too many burgers). Each of the seven cardinal sins is also linked, and binds all the names on the canvas too.

Pendulums—Movements of Life

Thin red threads connect all the pendulums to a singular point and streams over to the side, where the viewer may interact with the piece and create a movement. Echoing the movements of life, each point where a choice is made, a consequence is felt and witnessed.  After the movement and choice, then comes  gravity and inevitability, which forces the pendulum back to the peace of the midpoint.

Inquiry and Awareness Overall this installation deals with the complexity and senselessness of many aspects of the mind and society and how these accepted norms have created the world in which we live. My intention is not judgment, but inquiry and awareness.  Awareness leads me to my own conclusion:  that it would merely take each of us choosing to be kind, initially to ourselves, then flowing outward to others — each of us quietly making a choice that could possibly change this world into a saner, peaceful and accepting world.