Art & Design Culture: Spec Work

The Huffington Post recently mounted a competition calling for entires for logo designs for their political campaign activities. This act created a backlash among designers who thought it was in bad taste for a rising media power like The Huffington Post to call for free design work via Spec competition or crowdsourcing

. This, I learned, is referred to as Speculative (Spec) work. One of the main groups against this latest call is called AntiSpec and in its campaign it battles the scourge of Spec work head on.

'Spec(ulative) work is a cancer within the design industry and all designers need to understand their role in fighting it.'

   - AntiSpec site

Why is this Spec Work so offensive though? Doesn't everyone win? Designers get guaranteed payment when they win competitions and companies get the best design right? I ask the question because while working in Jamaica in the mid to late 2000’s, I gained a little experience as a designer and commissioned artist and found this to be part of the general practice. Then after visiting the AntiSpec site and listening to their arguments I started to realize that I felt this way as well but also had one foot in the other system of crowdsourcing.

Many young creatives frequently participate in this crowdsourcing activity as I also did in my early art school days. At that time, there was a constant flow of competitions calling for new logos for government bodies and departments, banks, special events, publicity posters etc.- the usual fare. Usually the award was enough money to cover personal expenditure and cost of materials for a semester in school. It was always a chancy issue as I could win the money or lose the money.

This is where focus of the AntiSpec group's campaign seems to lie. For each design call more than one and sometimes hundreds or thousands of designers prepare and submit work. Even though its one design, if we add up each individuals time and effort that they put into doing the work, the hours and costs rack up. When I was doing this, those hours included researching the subject and the organization, brainstorming, conceptualizing and sketching ideas, rendering the design digitally or by hand, transporting the design to the submission offices and other details. This doesn't include the money involved in funding this venture such as your art supplies, printing and more. That was also time away from my studies and assignments. In total of all those perhaps 4-6 entries I took place in I was fortunate enough to win one. This however is

rarely the case for the majority of competitors.

By now you may be thinking that it was not forced and that I willingly participated. I calculated the risks and due to the cost of my chosen field and the extreme shortage of part-time jobs for college students in Jamaica, I decided to enter. After all there was the potential of getting returns on my hard work. I remember the point however when I decided never to enter another Spec competition. It was when I realized that the persons judging these competitions were not necessarily looking for the best design in an academic sense. Often there were no designers or like creatives on the judging panels. In finding that to be the case I concluded that it was essentially pointless to use my creative training to create these designs when that wasn't even a factor in assessing submissions. I then decided to focus on fine art as my outlet.

I had an option but what if you are deeply rooted in the industry as an independent pro designer or part of a team at a design firm and have to spend substantial amounts to submit designs for these competitions and you never get compensated? It may not have occurred to commissioners of designs don't really understand that they are asking for free work as the focus is on the fact that there is a winner and a cash prize, but what about the unsuccessful designers? Maybe this issue comes down to a simple fact of value. Companies could be approaching the issue as opportunity for the masses of designers but isn't that ultimately disrespectful of the design craft?... or like auditions are part of the actor's career, should it be accepted as just part of the trade? Maybe artists, designers, writers, performers are also allowing the value of their work and control they have to be eroded by doing Spec work.

And one last thought...if there is Spec work in 'Design' what about 'Art'. Are calls for proposals for sculptures, paintings etc. and artist competitions hosted by galleries also speculative?

What are your thoughts on this?

Oh by the way, The Huffington Post pulled that campaign.

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Collage Aesthetic

Black-faced

In a timely way I got to see some images from GA Gardner's portfolio recently that use collage technique to make simple statements and ask certain questions. The collages range from the iconic-political statement to more painterly tributes to collage and black arts and culture. He works in various media such as paint, mixed media and also CGI. The resulting images however are all driven by this method of approaching imagery where he cuts into it and rearranges and pulls out meaning where we queried nothing before. The images 'Black-faced' (above), and 'Foster Mother and Child' (below), in particular speak to this side of his artistic approach. The painterliness that meets magazine page cut-outs can be seen in 'Earthly' and 'Icon' below. 

Limbo - CGI print

ART:Jamaica: You began your career using CGI to make large format images. The CGI images are very painterly and you also make paintings, so what led you from pigment and brush to the computer as an creative tool? 

GA Gardner: I came to the USA in 1988 with the plans of becoming a graphic designer. I didn't really understand all that that entailed but I already had a background in fine art and commercial art in Trinidad.  I also had training as a woodworker. I enrolled in college in the US and took a animation course and from then on I was hooked.  I thought it was fascinating even back then.  I later transferred to a University in San Francisco where I studied more fine art, film and animation, then got accepted to the Ohio State University where I received a Ph.D. in art education and focused on computer graphics and animation.  We were using SGI workstations that were donated to OSU by Industrial Light and Magic after being used to create the movie 'Jurassic Park'.  So very early on I got involved with creating high end 3D graphics and animation. This was not too much of a stretch from what I was already doing in the traditional fine art and commercial art world. In fact traditional fine art and woodwork prepared me for the field of CGI.  Creating texture for digital surfaces is much like painting and building the geometry in 3D is much like building wood structures.  Also I drew on my knowledge in film when it came to lighting CGI subjects.  And being a naturally animated person, well, understanding movement on the computer was not too much of a challenge.  In essence I took all my knowledge of traditional art and brought it to CGI.  Perhaps this is why my CGI images look so painterly. After graduation I began working on large format CGI in print format. I printed on various surfaces with master printers in NYC.  I preferred printing on watercolor paper at the time. 

Earthly

ART:Jamaica: Does this difference in working method affect as well as enable your artistic process?

GA Gardner: Those of us who were born before the CGI era may find that it is better to sketch first before getting on the computer or to experiment with color using paint and brush before experimenting with digital colors. In essence the computer to me must mimic what I have in mind not vice versa.  I find that I always gravitated towards traditional fine arts methods to resolve issues in the CGI world.

ART:Jamaica: You also have quite a large body of collages that incorporate the act of painting and manual dexterity as well as editing. How have the collages allowed you to develop ideas that the CGI work didn't allow. Tell us about your process in making these collages.

GA Gardner: Doing CGI was a very long process for me.  I had to build the images and geometry of the figures, pose them, create texture, light them and spend all day at the printers working on getting them to look right color wise. It is rewarding but long. In that world I was more of a purist. I did not want any paint or traditional tools to meddle with the final print. It was purely an archival CGI print. It is somewhat of a sterile process.  I later begin working on collages and this to me was the opposite of the spectrum. It required me to get loose with the image to rip parts of a perfectly good photo or text, to incorporate hand written messages, and to most importantly paint on the surface.  I was breaking out of the box I was taught in school.  I was messing things up if only to focus on the message, as opposed to leaving things clean to the point where the technique often overrides the message. When I create a collage I am more free to do anything.  I may start with an underpainting or an abstract background. I then begin building on that surface from background to foreground. I love working on wood as it allows me even more freedom to add various elements to the surface such as nails or metal.  I don't alway go there but I like the idea that I can go there if if I wish. Ironically, I try to stay off the computer gathering my raw materials from magazines, posters, and printed material.  I try to cut them up, paying close attention to color, lighting directions, and scale. I cut across cultural, racial and ethnic lines, I am looking for what fits well together to tell my story.  Or in some cases what strongly opposes that creates tension. Selection is a big part of the process.

Idol

 ART:Jamaica: In the collages there can be seen influences of other contemporary artists such as Wangechi Mutu, Ellen Gallagher and also references to Romare Bearden. How do you see your work in relation to the work of these other artists? 

GA Gardner: Wow, I like them all. They are all doing great work. Each of them is using college to allow people to see the same thing differently.  We are all somewhat surreal in our approach to creating images. We are all so different yet still we incorporate similar elements. Romare Bearden made giant steps in validating collage as a fine art form and I am inspired by his success.   

ART:Jamaica: Having experience of working in painting, mixed-media and digital media how does the idea of a 'collage aesthetic' represent your ideas and content.

GA Gardner: Collage allows me to connect cross-cultural, cross ethnic forms and identities and blend them on the surface. It gives me freedom to transform and metamorphosis traditional visual perspectives in ways that create new and enriched interpretations of reality.

Foster Mother and Child

ART:Jamaica: Can you discuss some of the core stories and ideas behind your collage images: 'Black-faced' and 'Foster Mother & Child.'

GA Gardner: Opposing images often brings tension. It is the notion that one doesn't fit well with the other and looks out of place. In examining these image the two parts are equally strong thus the tension is greater. This is the same for "Black-faced" as it is with "Foster Mother & Child"  We have a figure that is full of history. It is somewhat disturbing for folks to see but if you don't see color then it is not complicated and there isn't any tension.  That is the problem and that is why it is gets in your head because we see color first and second you see an unconventional roll being played out.  "Foster Mother & Child" is more of a Madonna like figure with the moon behind her in an angelic position and she is nursing her foster child. In an ideal race free world there should be nothing questionable about that. 

GA Gardner is a Trinidadian artist and you can see more of his work and view his information here

What meaning do you find in these images?

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Light Sensitive

Stefan and Camille

Marlon James's images are striking. 
The eyes, the faces, the stares won't quit. The images live with you as you think about what era the images are from, who the people are and how they relate to each other. There is something captured which is much more intense than found in everyday encounters or maybe it is that his timing and technique are superb.

Mark and Gisele

In 2010, James' images were shown at two major surveys of West Indian/ Caribbean Art. In fact the latter exhibition, Wrestling with the Image, is still open at the Art Museum of the Americas in Washington D.C. His image of two young artists standing side by side staring out at the audience has become the poster image of the show. In a sense it is very representative of what we know of 'The Caribbean Spirit' with hints of defiance but with great insight into the personas. One thing that can be noticed is the contrast in the heritage of the two individuals in this solitary but intimate scene. However this is very basic to that Caribbean experience as skin color, gender, and other external classifications are often not important in the connections we form with others who share a vision or an understanding. In looking at the two, we think about what connection these two have to each other, what their creative work might be and how they view the world individually and as a collective unit.  


James shared some information about  his process and work in general:

Jabari

'To answer your first question, my set up is either an arrangement of one to three lights, this is all dependent on the mood that I wish to convey in the photograph. When I first started this project I used only film. The camera that I was using was a Mamiya 645 Pro TL, a medium format film SLR.  I now use a Canon Mark II 5D.
For your second question, I have always been drawn towards the the human body. It is and will always be my primary subject. I feel there is so much to explore when photographing people. From the details of their skin, to the language of their bodies.

My work in the past 2-4years was focused on the anatomy of the body, both male and female. I mainly focused on the female as I felt that women were more open towards exploration than their male counterpart.

What's next? Well I am presently continuing my project on portrait of artists, for which my ultimate intention is to publish a coffee-table book of these photographs of Jamaica's art world.'   


What story do you think the images tell?


Visit James's site here

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The lure of International Art Centres (IACs)

Wanting to think about some drawings I have been doing I wanted to see where my work fit in with some of the artists whose work I really relate to. In that search I came across a Kenyan blog with a post on Wangechi Mutu. I really enjoy her work as it is really aesthetically pleasing and seems to meld Western aesthetics with images that reflect and challenge ideas about African imagery. The work is political but bathed in the glow of beauty so it makes me want to just look. While enjoying that act of looking, ideas, stories and questions seep in.

However the issue at hand was that the writer of this article was taking a Canadian art critic to task. The said critic, Murray Whyte was not in agreement of The Art Gallery of Ontario's expenditure to mount a major show for a non-Canadian artist. Of course the writer for 'Breaking News Kenya' found this ever so slightly offensive if not more. I bring this up as a post because Caribbean artists may or may not find that many grants and opportunities for exhibiting close to the International Art Centres (IACs)*, mostly found in 'developed' nations, are directed towards citizens. This can prove frustrating at times as the Caribbean artist goal is to exhibit work in these IACs.

On the one-hand viewpoints like Whyte's find validation in that the country's taxpayers support the institutions that curate culture. In a manner of speaking it can be understood as an agreement with taxpayers to pooling resources to ensure that for e.g. Canadian Art becomes globally recognised. ....But  that may only cover one side of the equation. A country's museums and galleries also bare the responsibility of putting on exhibitions that show new and global perspectives and expose that country's people to other world views and ideas. I add this because surely those creatives who can undertake dialogues about the world and 'ART' extends beyond artists within the borders of any one particular country. Surely the importance of an artists voice depends on more than their classification as a citizen of a particular nation.

What do you think about this? The link to the original article is below. Do you feel that location, citizenship etc. privileges an artists success within International Art Centres of the world? 

This being said as I consider whether relocating to an IAC such as London or New York or Paris or Tokyo etc. may be a better career move than living and working in our hometown. What do you think about this: Do you feel that the Art World is globalizing meaning an artist could live anywhere in the world and still gain exposure or is it that the main International Art Centres remain as edgy because they are attracting more international artists? What about citizenship-clause policies like Whyte's as discussed above?


Comment below to give your feedback and checkout the Breaking News Kenya article. See more about Wangechi Mutu's work on Youtube.

*The term 'IACs', abbreviated from International Art Centres was coined by myself and I am not necessarily aware of it as an official phrase or jargon in use within the field.

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What I think I should do in 2011

So its really late to say this, but Happy New Year to ART:Jamaica readers and followers, far and wide. Every year, I try to think about the things that I can do in the year. Last year, I wanted to work on doing some longer more insightful pieces and interviews as slowly I tried to build the catalogue of what this blog does. There are several things that I can and can't do based on my distance away from the Caribbean. However I think it gives me a chance to do things that are less dependent on location.

This year, I want to take the opportunity to do shorter pieces more often and on specific areas e.g. review of art pieces, the way exhibitions are created, the mechanics of being an artist etc. This year I am also looking to expand unto YouTube! I am really excited about that. So here is a call for persons with related events and exhibitions etc. happening this year to add them to the comments of this post or on the Facebook page.

So thats what I think I should be doing this year but feel free to suggest as well and we'll see what we can make work.

Best
Oneika

N.B. If leaving your contact below for your own ID protection please use this format 'username(at)emailprovider.com'
Also comments are now moderated so they are recieved and reviewed by me before being published to the page so don't worry about losing your entry.

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ghostly white

ARTSBAR@Rissei is an annual large exhibition of student work from art majors around the Osaka and Kyoto area of Japan. It was also an opportunity to have your works seen by future collectors and other art lovers.  It was good to see how much dedication was put into the show by the students, in fact the craftsmanship was quite high in many of the works but that is something I do notice here in Japan. There is great commitment to making something which even if it obeys its own aesthetic of simplicity or handicraft, is often technically lovely. I walked through the halls of the now abandoned Rissei Elementary school with its creaking board floors and long dark passages and thought I could see a pattern. Perhaps I was finding an aesthetic or cultural perspective or perhaps it was my outsiders reading of it. Below I have put some of the works that seemed to come together in its own theme. There were many others of note but for this purpose, being selective will illustrate more clearly.

Tomoko Tamura 田村　智子

Ashida Fuuma 芦田　風馬

Above, Hashimoto Tomonari 橋本　知成
Below, Kazusato Ooishi 大石　かずさと 

There was a aura about the works that was  repeated in the way the work was made and composed. A feeling of it being just barely there, fleeting, a thought realized for a moment and a feeling of a presence. In works such as the school desks made out of tracing paper, a school desk made out of barely perceptible wire, paper houses in old wash stands, portraits made out of melting ice, your thoughts could hover between wonder at the ease of destruction and wonder that the work had the strength to exist as is.

In other works there was a strong feeling of discomfort at being in the same space with it but also an inability to look away because of its strikingness. A gigantic and monstrous baby doll which you realise might just as easily come to life, when you think about it in the context of films like Tottoro or Spirited Away.

Artist Currently Unknown

The work indeed seemed delicate and precious but also acted as some kind of transport to a time or place or a memory. Of course uses of colour is also a main contributor to this. Colour is often kept quite limited by  utilizing only the raw materials and maybe slightly enhancing them. So the use of white and fragile or transforming materials seems to be what the future art stars in Japan lean towards.  I wonder if the art market is so fine tuned now that we can actually forecast trends for the next season like the fashion industry does?

Kimura Kento 木村　健人

Whether it is cultural aesthetic or trending there I think there may be a coming strand of contemporary art that goes beyond the coolness of minimalism. Work which is quiet and reflective but also uncanny in a way that you feel in the pit of you stomach. Work which bears an aura I refer to as being ghostly white.

Sai Jyungyoku 崔　じゅんぎょく

I am wondering what the trends or developing aesthetic in the various Caribbean islands are like now...

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Does it still hurt? Should it still hurt?

Walking through a trendy artsy student area one lazy Sunday in Kyoto, I entered this famous bookstore that is a famous landmark in the area. I found many interesting things, graphic zines, rare comics, out of print journals etc. Stacked to the gills with narrow passages in the way many bookstores are here, I came to the children's book section. Glanced down and saw Chibi Kuro Sanbo staring back at me.

The title in my limited scope of Japanese can be read as Little Black Sambo. I looked at Sambo for a while and he looked at me. Not sure of what my reaction should be. I stood there thinking that I am expected to have a reaction right or is that outdated in 2010? If I am not certain about my reaction, maybe I should have none but by having none am I agreeing to Chibi Kuro Sanbo; and thereby disregarding all that forefathers passed through so that I may be able to stand in Kyoto leisurely looking at this book? By now I could spy the bookseller looking at me either curiously or nervously. 

My question is, what would you do, is it meaningless and outdated to feel something about these stereotypes seeping back into daily life. If my objection to it is not going to interrupt the importance in this culture then how do I regard it? Are our reactions programmed expectations or do we have a valid point? Can it be explained away as part of the 'kawaii' cute culture in Japan and therefore harmless? ...and in a country where in most rooms you will often be the only person of colour can we expect a reaction to be understood or even heard?

I was thinking about these things all that time. I still had not much of a real emotion so took a photo instead. 

Figurines seen in restaurant windows in Teramachi shopping district, Kyoto

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Alice Yard 4 x 4 Anniversary

Alice Yard celebrates it 4th anniversary with a collection of events. 
PRESS RELEASE
http://aliceyard.blogspot.com/


ALICE YARD FOURTH ANNIVERSAY CELEBRATION EVENTS
DATE: FRIDAY 24^th September – October 1st
September 2010 is Alice Yard’s fourth anniversary as an independent space for creative experiment. This year we mark the occasion with 4x4, a programme of events focusing on Alice Yard’s regional network, and our creative collaborators in four specific Caribbean locations: the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, and Suriname. 
What’s On in the Main Galleries (the Box, Annex and Band-room Nook):
The exploration of digital photo- and video-based work is a significant recent trend among younger Jamaican artists. Shot in Kingston assembles work by Marvin Bartley, Keisha Castello, Stefan Clarke, Marlon James, O’Neil Lawrence, Ebony Patterson, and Oneika Russell, curated by Christopher Cozier and O’Neil Lawrence. 
The Galleries are open on:
Friday 17 September (7.00 to 9.00 pm); Saturday 18 September (7.00 to 9.00 pm, when Cozier will be available for informal conversation about the works); and Wednesday 29 September (8.00 to 10.00 pm), or by special request.
Friday 24 September: Outward reach
Alice Yard’s Caribbean network includes independent contemporary art institutions in the Bahamas and Suriname. Artists  John Cox of Popopstudios in Nassau and Marcel Pinas of the Kibii Wi Foundation in Moengo join Christopher Cozier in a conversation about regional collaborations and future possibilities. 8.00 pm
 Monday 27 September: Heino Schmidt: Equilibrium
Bahamian artist  Heino Schmidt has been living and working at Alice Yard since May 2010, supported by a Commonwealth Connections International Arts Residency. Equilibrium is a new work created during his time in Port of Spain, also presented at the 2010 Liverpool Biennial. 8.00 pm
http://heinoschmid.com/

 
Wednesday 29 September: O’Neil Lawrence on the Kingston scene O’Neil Lawrence is an artist and curator at the National Gallery of Jamaica. He will give an informal talk on current trends in Jamaica and the artists included in Shot in Kingston. 8.00 pm
 Friday 1 October: Sheena Rose and Lauren Hinds
Barbadian  Sheena Rose was artist in residence at Alice Yard in May 2009, when she presented her animated video work Town. She recently participated in a residency and exhibition in Cape Town.Lauren Hinds is a Trinidadian artist working in the medium of the graphic novel. She recently completed a year-long programme at the Centre for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, Vermont. Rose and Hinds will spend a week working together, then present their collaborative project to the public, together with recent solo works. 8.00 pm
 Further details of each event will be posted at the Alice Yard website during the 4x4 programme.
Please check for times and updates.
About Alice Yard 
80 Roberts Street, Woodbrook
Alice Yard Space is a small gallery in the backyard of 80 Roberts Street--a nine-by-seven-by-ten-foot concrete and glass box designed by architect Sean Leonard, which opens in September 2007. It is just large enough to fit an artist's installation, a video work, a few drawings or paintings. Since September 2006, Alice Yard has been home to a series of weekly Friday-night "Conversations", bringing musicians, artists, writers, and audiences together for informal performances and interactions. The gallery now creates the possibility for another kind of conversation, by offering contemporary artists a space to show a carefully selected piece of recent work, or even work in progress. The concept evolved from a conversation between Sean Leonard and artist Christopher Cozier, and through a series of drawings in a sketchbook they shared over a period of six months. They conceived of a modest space where artists can experiment with ideas and works not normally feasible in a commercial gallery. They are inviting other artists to join in their sketchbook conversation, as it were, and also inviting viewers into the process. Alice Yard Space asks questions about the relationship between artists and their community, outside the conventional bounds of the art market (but not oblivious to commercial concerns). 
About  the show’s main curator and Alice Yard administrator Christopher Cozier 
Christopher Cozier is an artist and writer living and working in Trinidad. He has participated in a number of exhibitions focused upon contemporary art in the Caribbean and internationally. Since 1989 he has published a range of essays on related issues in a number of catalogues and journals.

He is on the editorial collective of  Small Axe, A Caribbean Journal of Criticism, published and distributed by Duke University Press. He is the editor of sxspace a blog platform about the visual on the small axe website. The artist has been an editorial adviser to BOMB magazine for their Americas issues (Winter, 2003, 2004 & 2005). The artist is a Senior Research Fellow at the Academy of The University of Trinidad & Tobago (UTT) and was Artist-in-Residence at Dartmouth College during the Fall of 2007 .  
He co-curatored the exhibition Paramaribo Span , Suriname 2010 , recently showed his work Tropical Night in AFRO MODERN at the Tate, Liverpool, 2010, Sound System II at the recently concluded Rockstone and Bootheel: Rockstone and Bootheel: Contemporary West Indian Art in Hartford , Conneticut and is the 2010 Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival commissioned artist. His work “NOW SHOWING” is the 2010 festival image. 


-Info and Photo supplied by Richard Rawlins

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What to do if you are an artist.

So you're an artist and there are many things they didn't teach you in art school. Many things you have to figure out for yourself. The thing is that if you happen to be living in a world capital this isn't as much a problem as the art world may be bigger and more accessible or at least there is more of it. What if you don't live in an art capital or what if figuring it out is a steep learning curve ....

Emma Taylor on accreditedonlinecolleges.com has compiled a stellar list of videos from TED which discuss Art. TEDtalks drew my attention on YouTube over a year ago. Suddenly ideas and knowledge that wasn't always easy to find or understand was compiled into manageable videos online. They take the form of the expert presenting their research or field of study in engaging ways. These experts are from many fields e.g. social sciences, media, design, arts, biological research and the list goes on. There have been a number of art world professionals and top dogs making presentations and sharing insider knowledge. So now thanks to Emma you have this info at your finger tips.

20 Awe-Inspiring TED Talks for Artists & Designers

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Duppy Art: stories in clay

Ah the wonders of social networking. I wanted to find out if there were any persons in or connected to the Caribbean making animations or comics trying to develop some cultural identity through their work. I got a response from one person: Scally Ranks. Clicking the links to his videos was a surprise because if I expected animation, I didn't really expect clay animation. Why, because I associate it mainly with UK's Aardman Studios. 'Wallace and Gromit' and such. When a group becomes associated with a particular material or method, the aesthetics go with it too. in my mind claymation was for a certain style of representation brought to focus by Aardman. Of course at anytime your generalizations can be proven wrong and thats always a nice surprise. I asked Scally to tell me about his work so far. I wanted to understand where he saw his platform for his works, in a gallery, in a cinema, online, none or all.

' I created 'Dancehall Claymation' to both promote and share dancehall music to a wider audience,before i began filming i was sculpturing using wax,some of my early work icluded 3 life size rasta heads made from solid wax,also i was painting with wax,during this time my interest with dancehall and reggae was growing and i found my self making dancehall singers out of wax,i was also just about to teach myself video production and editing,one day the idea came to add my art with dancehall music and put them in a film,because wax was not moveable i changed materials and started sculpting from plasticine and my developement in claymation began.
I found that even using basic Claymation techniques i could produce a video good enought to be watched,i made the term ''Freestyle Dancehall Claymation'' as most of my work is unplanned.

In the early days of Duppy Art my models were more basic,often only having the top half of the bodies,the rest hidden out of shot,a 3 min vid would take me almost a month,taking one picture at a time and then putting them together,sometimes a hundred or more,my motivation was my love for the music i was working with and also my enjoyment at learning about jamaica,the people and culture,learning 'patwah' was essensial,being english i wanted to understand what was being said in the songs and educating myself was the only way.
I was able to use basic editing software to arrange the shots and overlay a soundtrack,once it was complete i would post them on youtube,this was really just a place to store them as my computer was always low on memory,but i noticed the videos gettin views and comments, i realise i had something special and unique.
I began to make the films to look like they were part of a bigger film,this was so i could go back an make more to either the start or the end,soon after i started i was being approached by people inside the reggae and dancehall community and i started to get promotion of many websites,as i dont own a dot com website i rely on youtube and facebook to host my work,as a problem in most artist's life is having a place to display there work i figued if it was online it would be available to a wider veiwing audience.

I have high hopes for my work,both in the commercial sector and the underground,i have been the first to put Dancehall dj's in Claymation and also King haile Selassie,the model of the king was soon sold to a reggae collector as im finding now my models are becoming alot better and filming with them often spoils them so i also do commisions for just models.
Duppy Art is on a number of websites around the world and was featured at the Reggae Film festival in jamaica in 2008 and has been shown on tv.


'Currently i'm working on re-building my studio after moving house,but coming up for Duppy Art will be more dancehall and reggae films,i have sold most of the models from my old vids to reggae collectors so im also having to make new models to use.

 - Edited interview with Scally Ranks

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A VOICE AND ITS THOUSAND WORDS: Michael Thompson

Around Facebook and Flickr Michael Thompson's designs, images, politics by beauty drifted into my consciousness. Again the connection emerged with design and beauty being used for political expression. Is this this a new route? Will design effectively replace the political voice of Painting in Jamaica? Is the accessability of Design replacing the often high-browness of Fine Art? I asked Michael a few questions and he gave me his thoughts.

Can you give me some insight into your background as a designer/artist and relationship to Jamaica.

I am a Jamaican living in the United States. I attended Calabar High School in Kingston, Jamaica and graduated in 1976. After leaving Calabar I studied commercial art at the Jamaica School of Art as a part time student. My first design job was an apprentice position at the Daily News art department. Shortly after, I joined Paisley, Kelly Keynon & Eckhardt Advertising Agency(PKK&E) as a layout artist and illustrator. After a long stint at PKK&E I took up an offer as Art Director, at Mike Jarrett Communications, a public relations firm. It was my last gig in Jamaica before I migrated to the United States in 1989. In 1978 I designed a poster that got me a place on the Jamaican delegation to the 11th World Festival of Youth and Students in Havana Cuba. This was an amazing cultural experience that has influenced my design aesthetics. I was very inspired by the beauty and power of the poster arts produced by the Cuban agencies of ICAIC (the Cuban Institute of Cinematic Art and Industry) Editoria Political, and OSPAAL (the Organization in Solidarity with the People of Africa, Asia, and Latin America.) The artistic energy from that festival in Cuba and the international art that I was exposed to still influence my creativity today. The International festival definitely opened a lot of doors both internationally and locally once I return to Jamaica. I had my first major art show in Jamaica which included paintings, poster art and drawings. This exhibition was a two artist show held at the Bank of Jamaica with myself and Clinton Hutton a fellow progressive artist at the time, this was around 1979.

Looking at your portfolio I am seeing at least two approaches to design emerging. One seems more meant for traditional commercial work where the designer could be anyone from anywhere. In the other kind I am seeing a designer asserting a voice about nation and place and culture through the design and imagery. How are you balancing and approaching the two differently?

It is important to separate my commercially designed work from what I call my Activist/Awareness designs. On one side of the scale the commercial design process is born out of some kind of consensus; the clients input and direction coupled with my creative conceptual ideas. This struggle can often become an hinderance to creativity depending on the kind of relationship and freedom I have with the client. It is always a struggle to break through the corporate briefs and restraints. On the other side of the scale my Activist/Awareness designs are expressed through "freeform creativity" layered on a forward thinking design platform. They are not restrained by any briefs or directions to corrupt the creative process. This is my voice and conceptual ideas expressed undiluted. It is my passion and conviction all wrapped up around an array of issues, ideas and causes. What you see in these designs are a commitment to freedom in the creative process. I try to separate and balance the two by approaching the creative processes differently. The Activist/Awareness designs are my personal work which is very important to me as a means to explore new techniques and ideas in a freestyle way.

What visions do you have for the role of your more activist work and how has it being delivered to its audience and used by them?

The delivery formula for my Activist Art Project can be summed up in five words “communication by any means necessary.” FLICKR plays a big role in introducing my poster art to a broad international audience. It is where this present episode of my activism started and already my work has attracted thousands of viewers since I started posting my art on FLICKR a year and half ago. The web has been a wonderful way to achieve exposure and to get my message out. However, it is not the only way my work is delivered. I make digital 18”x24” poster prints and have shown locally in traditional gallery settings. For example , I exhibited at a gallery in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania with a group of underground Zine publishers. This was a new type of audience of young rebel writers and graffiti enthusiasts. I am also working on other collaborations with publications and archives like the Palestinian Poster Project and the Canter for the Study of Political Graphics in an efforts to expand the audience. I am also planning a collaboration with a local skateboard company to do a show in their retail outlet later this year. I hope to do more of this type of delivery.

I do get many request for the use of my work as fundraising or promotional material to support a variety of causes that are represented by the designs. One of which is the design in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza strip. The image of the “Gaza Child” has gotten the biggest request and admiration to date. Posters and T-shirts were made by The Gaza Freedom March organizers and distributed at the march in Egypt and other cities around the world during the International solidarity march in January, 2010. International requests for the “Gaza Child” design are still coming in from as far away as South Africa and Australia. The Gaza Freedom March and The Haiti Poster Project are two campaigns that have helped publicized my designs and messages on an impressive scale and have also raised money for two very important causes.

I am working on more collaborations and hope to create a dedicated website featuring only my activist works in the near future. My Haiti poster designs will be featured on TV Cultura on a program called Almanaque. TV Cultura is a public television channel in Brazil. The program will use my Haiti designs as an example on how others especially the youths can use the internet to help Haiti. I have to thank many of my FLICKR friends and other supporters who have helped to spread the messages and my work to new audiences via blogs, online galleries and Facebook postings.

Do you think art can change the world?

Yes, to a point. Art can play an important and supportive role in changing the world. Art by itself cannot change the world. However, it can communicate ideas and messages in a powerful and effective way; elevating awareness in people that might not o

therwise turn to action. It can provide a powerful visual queue for those in the struggle to help motivate others to participate in the process of change. All branches of the arts can play a relevant role effectively. As artists we can ask questions about the many problems around us and present them in creative ways to foster dialogue and discussion. Activism is still the best way to achieve change, people have to stand up and go out there to "make a difference." I think more artists need to point to the problems and find the best solutions to stimulate activism. I would like to see more art in workshop settings, where people are no longer passively sitting and consuming the art. Instead, they are creating together, feeling empowered and focusing on solutions, community and communication. I am upbeat that this activism among young artist world-wide have begun to find roots. I admire artists like Shep

ard Fairey of OBEY, Dignidad Rebelde and Taller Tupac Amaru Collective who are doing amazing works in highlighting a number of political and social issues. I would love to see more visual artist in Jamaica standing up and speaking out through their art on issues of injustice, human rights and environmental concerns affecting Jamaica and the wider world. We can find examples of Jamaican musicians who have successfully used beautiful music to raise consciousness and to fight injustice; Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Burning Spear, Michael Smith to name a few. I think the Jamaican visual artists can find inspiration from the history of activism in our music.

It is clear that beauty is important and iconic imagery is the support for your strong ideas. Can you explain the process of how you locate an issue for use and then create an appealing image.

You do not have to look very far to find issues to support. It can be local or international, the media and the web are filled with stories of war, injustice, brutality, environmental concerns and exploitation, you name it is there. Lets look closer to home, the violence that occurred in Tivoli Gardens Jamaica on Labour day (May 24, 2010) and its aftermath was terrible. It was not hard to see that the stories that were presented by some local and international media had ignored the physical and emotional trauma that the majority of citizens were facing in that community. Hundreds of police and military personnel attacked a community inhabited by innocent women, children, and men, killing over 70 in the process. An unnecessary war unleashed on a civilian population. The stories that were coming from the residents totally contradicted the official reports. The residents spoke of summary executions and brutality by the security forces.

One of the poster design that I created in solidarity with the residents of Tivoli Gardens and Denham Town depicted the iconic face of a crying woman. I started out with the illustration because I wanted it to set the tone of the design. I am pretty much entirely Adobe illustrator-based as far as software is concerned. The entire design and illustration is created from start to finish in Adobe Illustrator; no sketches or scans. I usually prefer to work this way. The expression on her face captured the frightful experience they had endured. I read some of the statements given by members of the community and have seen the images and videos of the women weeping for their loved ones that were either killed or missing. It was clear to me that a very large number of the people living in Tivoli Gardens were woman and children. The face on the poster represents the weeping mothers of Tivoli Gardens. Everyone with a heart can relate to the humanity in the narrative. I then added a bold and powerful statement that reminded the government and other Jamaicans that the residents of Tivoli are citizens of Jamaica not enemies and they deserve justice. I wanted a beautifully designed image, colorful, and strong enough to grab the attention the first time someone looked at it.

What do you think about Michael's work and what he is doing as a designer of political imagery?

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