My project revolves around the culture of Barbados and its open receptiveness to other cultures or lack thereof. My first piece depicts the very close mindedness of various persons that make up the Barbadian public, the very foundation of Barbadian culture. The piece is reminiscent of one of the most Symbolic icons of Barbados, the Chattel House. Is began as a structure that was to be made of card and was to be painted to resemble the patterns and color of the average chattel house. This chattel house was to contain figures which represent everyday people who imprisoned themselves inside the very element of their culture in order to prevent contamination from other cultures. As the piece advanced the idea remained the same but the design then stemmed into a much more stylized, minimalist and representational one which was then to be built with an outer shell of varnished ¼ inch plywood sheet which was just to have the symbolic shape of the chattel house, this represented the illusion of a well kept, inviting advancing culture. The inside of the structure on the other hand shows a very different side of culture, one which is decapitated, dirty and houses a wire cage with figures that represent everyday persons of Barbadian culture, those who consider themselves truly African or just Barbadian. These figures have gladly barricaded themselves inside the cage and have taken up residency there whilst blatantly ignoring the keys to freedom as they raise the younger generation to enjoy life inside the confines of their insecurities.
My second piece is somewhat the opposite of the first in the sense that it represents cultural cannibalism. The idea began as a piece reminiscent of a prison compound where the Barbadian flag would be at the center enclosed by barbwire and surrounded by many international flags with the only narrow entry ajar as the flag of United States of America is allowed unrivaled passage. The idea of this piece then stemmed into what would resemble a ball made from cable tie, half covered with flags with the Barbadian flag in the center, this idea soon turn to a funnel shaped net made of cable ties that hung loosely down the center which would again house the Barbadian flag with many other flags being bound to the top of the funnel and lead down into the center to Barbadian flag. My final idea for the piece was then to be a spider web made of various wires to represent technology and information sharing, with random world flags being fastened to the web with cable ties to simulate various food sources being trapped on the web with the U.S.A flag already having been cocooned and almost completely devoured by the spider which would be symbolized as the spider. This piece makes a statement to the necessary balance of survival and growth between the countries of the world where ones does not pick and choose what countries or cultures are relevant enough to be considered as carriers of information and learning tool but rather make the best of whatever source of information, culture and nutrients that may happen to be ensnared, because how can an entity truly know its self, survive and find its rightful place in the world if it does not know the entities that surround it.
