Cultural Voice

Artfile: Claude Gayle Graduated in 1978 from Jamaica School of Art in the Cultural Training Centre in Graphic Arts, now the Edna Manley College. When he started the campus was located on North Street. He owns a screen printing shop focusining mainly on textile printing in the Philadelphia area. Main customers : corporate entities, churches, clubs, fund raisers, small businesses Been in business for 18 years: Islander Joe Obstacles: As a Jamaican overseas the main obstacle was establishing credibility. Solution: If you really come with the goods then they eventually recognize the ability. He lives by the motto: you get a long way by exercising humility and patience. Advice to young entrepreneurs: The best progress comes slowly, when you have time to consistently grow. In business, overnight success is not the goal but a sustainable approach is optimal.

 (Crique Algeria) Cirque de Soleil is a great candidate for looking at just how to create an industry through innovation. Sure, there were localised circus troupes world wide and it wasn't a new concept. However, Cirque du Soleil managed to take a fringe phenomenon and bring it mainstream, making it very profitable for artists, organisers, host cities, suppliers... alike! Cirque de Soleil offers artistic performances that are a unique blending of the circus and theatre. They were able to create a product within an uncontested market space, which meant no direct competitors. By standardising the model, yet allowing for a great degree of artistic freedom within this model, the result has been lower production costs and spectacular productions. Quick Stats  Seen by over 70 million people  Over 40 countries  Generated over US$700 million in revenues  (Cirque Algeria) Can you think of ways to create your own industry?

Pablo Picasso's Guernica "What do you think an artist is? An imbecile who only has eyes if he's a painter, ears if he's a musician, or a lyre in every chamber of his heart if he's a poet – or even, if he's a boxer, only some muscles? Quite the contrary, he is at the same time a political being constantly alert to the horrifying, passionate or pleasing events in the world, shaping himself completely in their image. How is it possible to be uninterested in other men and by virtue of what cold nonchalance can you detach yourself from the life that they supply so copiously? No, painting is not made to decorate apartments. It's an offensive and defensive weapon against the enemy."   - Pablo Picasso As artists we must recognise that we influence society. Art has always been used to transmit messages whether or not it is the intention of the artist. It is this ability for art to transcend (through poetry, music, dance, theatre, painting) realities, m...

Florence Goldson, Belize "Hope is an eternal fire that for me cannot be quenched" Talking to our Caribbean Neighbours can be very insightful. I caught up with Florence Goldson (Belize) and Nalisa Maryat (St Lucia), two truly 'Caribbean' women and asked them what they thought of World Peace, Political Issues and Life... Florence Do you think there can be World Peace? "i don't know, i long for it and i do my part to achieve it in my little corner of the world but i recognize how profitable war is for a powerful, wealthy few. i do not think peace will be achieved in my lifetime, however hope is an eternal fire that for me can not be quenched...so i work with the hope that some future generation will know a peace that i have not known." In Belize, what is the biggest political issue that needs to be addressed? "for me a major issue is the rampant corruption at all levels of the public sector coupled with the absolute disregard of m...

Dutty Bookman took time out to reason with Artistic Expressions at Manifesto JA's Festival this weekend. He spoke to us about his journey as a spiritual artist and a literary artist. "Before you can partake in the revolution you have to be the revolution!" I've known Dutty for at least 15 years, and it's interesting to see how he has evolved. In the 90' s he was very clean cut and everyone called him Gavin or 'Hutchy'. He has maintained his charming smile and honest expressions, but his philosophy about life has changed dramatically. He now talks about revolution. He speaks openly with us about his journey, as we sit under a Blue Mahoe Tree outside of the Edna Manley College's School of Dance, surrounded by participants of the festival, sharing insight and engaging in questions exposed after the session 'Meet the Artist' featuring the likes of Mutabaruka, Cherine Anderson & Bob Andy. "Success comes w...

As Manifesto Jamaica launches its festival today at the Edna Manley with an amazing line-up of activities, including dance and music workshops, poetry 101, discussions about the future of the Arts movement. I think about how far Jamaica has evolved, to a great extent through the arts. Where we have failed economically, we have managed to be influencers, not with dollars but with words, songs, dance, and art. We are still a young society, gaining independence August 6, 1962. As we move into our 50th year, we are evaluating the different ways in which we can utilize our natural creative advantage to change the inequalities and low productivity rates that now face us. The Bauxite Industry due to mismanagement in the 70s and subsequest fall off in demand is no longer a solution. We no longer own our sugar factories, and even if they now become profitable, the profits will not be truly ours. Tourism can be self destructive as the more tourists, the ...

Patrick O'Neill, dancer with the NYC based, Contemporary Ballet Company Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance took time out to share his opinions on a few things. Cultural Voice will feature every week short profiles on different artists. (When asking the questions we encourage the artistes not to think too much and to give a spur of the moment answer so we know what they really think.) Patrick in Performance Picture by Sagitarii Photography, Cultural Fusion, 2011 Patrick was born and raised in Rochester, NY and is currently living in Brooklyn, NY. Life Philosophy? His philosophy on life is... "life only throws at you what it thinks you can handle. nothing less. nothing more. good things happen and bad things happen and its how you adapt and learn and thrive that makes life worth living." When Asked about his Cultural Icons.... "hmmm cultural icons... well the gay man in me would have to say Beyonce! hahahaha! she has a vision of what she wants and then she goe...

Excerpts from review in The Jamaica Gleaner, Tuesday, November 15, 2011 "The Saturday evening show was shrouded in laughter generated from the words of the three featured presenters - Velma Pollard, Monica Minott and Earl Lovelace."  Earl Loveless greets guests after the reading "Regardless of its manifestation, it usually begins with words. And words are no more beautifully presented than in songs, poetry and novel. However, it is the latter two that were the focus of Artistic Expressions Limited's third and final presentation of their calendar events. It was simply titled Wordz, a fitting conclusion and title, as the previous two events were an art exhibition and two consecutive evenings of dance dubbed 'Cultural Fusion'." Drummers giving the call to order! Velma Pollard Reads from Collection 'Philosophers' (Photo: Jamaica Gleaner) Monica Minott reads 'Silencing the Stones' among other poems Earl L...

The Amazon Rainforest in South America has been named as one of the 7 Wonders of Nature (for full list check link  7 Wonders of Nature - World Facts ) . I'm hoping that this designation will bring some attention to some of the not so wonderful aspects such as the marginalization of the indigenous peoples of the Amazon and the widespread deforestation that's robbing the world of critical resources and defences against the negative effects of climate change. I read an interesting fact on wikipedia (yes i did wiki) about the region. On 18 January 2007, FUNAI reported that it had confirmed the presence of 67 different uncontacted tribes in Brazil. Brazil as a result, now has the largest number of uncontacted people in the world... The Amazon region is expansive....this map gives us an idea of just how vast it is. Source: Study by Rett A Butler So when we think that in 6 years, between 2000 and 2006, the region lost almost 150,999 sq km (that's pl...

The AE team had the pleasure of dinner with the award winning novelist and special guest of ‘Wordz’ Earl Lovelace, who is in Jamaica to launch his latest book ‘Is Just a Movie’ as well as to conduct workshops and book readings. We had dinner at a quaint restaurant ‘Guilt Trip’, known for its deliciously decadent desserts. It struck me in conversation with Lovelace, whose even tempered demeanour immediately put one at ease, that he had a very subtle but unmistakable sense of pride which was complemented by his strong identification with his Caribbean Heritage. Lovelace, who writes in the genre of Caribbean Fiction, spoke longingly of the development of the region’s post colonial culture.   Lovelace spoke of the lost opportunities for harnessing the Caribbean Spirit. He spoke of days when the West Indies Cricket Team had been World Champions for 15 years consecutively. He believed that the spirit that thrived then, could have been pr...

There are people throughout time who have managed to eclipse the ordinary, inspiring hundreds, thousands sometimes even millions of devout disciples. He/She has often done this through shifting cultural paradigms, and creatively changing the way we imagine the world. I asked Summathi, Elvis & Honore to name the Cultural Icon who most inspires...... Sumathi Shanmugam, India Swami Vivekenanda He is considered a key figure in the introduction of Hindu philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the "Western" World, mainly in America and Europe and is also credited with raising interfaith awareness, bringing Hinduism to the status of a major world religion during the end of the 19th century C.E. Vivekananda is considered to be a major force in the revival of Hinduism in modern India. He is perhaps best known for his inspiring speech beginning with "Sisters and Brothers of America", through which he introduced Hinduism at the Parliament of the World's Relig...

Juan Chong, Youth Activist, Peru World Peace in today's world is impossible, despite all our most beloved wishes, there is still a long way to go. Cultural differences -including religion- and economic interests are the biggest obstacles to understand and care for each other. Now more than ever globalization and ICTs facilitate access to information -which favors the cultural understanding, and it may be the accelerator for the world peace we crave for. But still, economic interests will remain as a huge challenge to beat… Jessi Shaw, Dancer, Jamaica I doubt there can be world peace because the human race seems to be victims of greed. We are always fighting each other; constantly competing for dominance whether it be economically, politically, socially, etc. We are not fans of harmony because money and power seems so much more satisfying. Kai Watson, Painter, Jamaica I'd say no. Because good and bad or war and peace are the balance of one another. T...

Earl Lovelace's Novels and Plays include: While Gods Are Falling, 1965         The Schoolmaster, 1968 The Dragon Can't Dance, 1979 The Wine of Astonishment, 1982 Jestina's Calypso and Other Plays, 1984 The New Hardware Store, 1985 A Brief Conversion and Other Stories, 1988 Salt, 1997   Is Just a Movie, 2011 Tickets available at Cannonball Cafe (Manor Park, Loshushan & New Kingston )

Cultural Voice is a blog by Artistic Expressions Limited . Artistic Expressions Limited is committed to promoting the growth of the Literary Arts, Dance, Music and the Visual Arts. We believe in Cultural Exchange and try to foster intercultural dialogue and understanding. We invite you to join the discussion. Follow us on twitter @artisticja, and on facebook @Artistic Expressions Jamaica  enjoy!