Michael Robinson, Gleaner Writer
Sponsor of SuperPlus Under-40 exhibition, Wayne Chen (left), and curator of the Mutual Life Gallery, Gilou Bauer (right), exchange friendly banter with the winner of the jury prize of $100,000, Khepera Oluyia Hatsheptwa (second left), and Raymond Graham, winner of the people's prize of $50,000, at the exhibition awards ceremony at the Mutual Life Gallery in New Kingston recently.
Winner of the Jury Prize of $100,000, Khepera Oluyia Hatsheptwa, shows some of her work to Spanish Ambassador Jesus Silva at the SuperPlus Under-40 exhibition awards ceremony at the Mutual Life Gallery recently.- photos by Peta-Gaye Clachar/Staff Photographer
WHEN ALL the speeches were over and done, there were two winners in the seventh instalment of Mutual Gallery's Under-40 Artist of the Year competition. Khepera Hatsheptwa was awarded the juried prize, while Raymond Graham with the most visitors' votes won the public prize.
Khepera was ecstatic in response to the announcement of her award. Her speech was an emotional acceptance of a prize that had eluded her for the last two years.
She talked about the camaraderie shared by the show's participants as they all worked towards mounting the exhibit. Hatsheptwa also praised the gallery's curator, Gilou Bauer, for her enthusiastic assistance over and beyond duty's call. Graham, for his part, was a man of few words, acknowledging sources of support and sharing his genuine passion for art. "I love what I do."
Hatsheptwa said her work was a different approach to the same themes. Simplification seems to have given the output more clarity of expression. The circle, one of her recurring elements, returns in her installation 'The Cradle of Life' as the semi-circular sections of a baby's crib. The elemental nature of her work infuses it with universal connectivity.
Graham, a trained painter currently studying art education, stepped outside of his discipline to create the sculptural 'The Manifestation of Taunting'.
While he admits to having a penchant for sculpture, he says the idea came to him while working on an assignment for sculpture class.
The evening was the culmination of an exhibition by the four artists shortlisted in this year's Under-40 competition. Having been selected to produce the pieces for the show by virtue of their portfolio submissions, all four artists had strong entries. Curator Gilou Bauer, in her opening speech mentioned some of the challenges faced during the production process. Gilou also talked about the importance of nurturing young artistic talent. Her speech was directed, in part, to collectors of Jamaican art who, as she put it, "only have the works of the masters in their collections".
Sponsored by SuperPlus, the evening happened to coincide with the birthday of SuperPlus's CEO, Wayne Chen, who was treated to an impromptu chorus of Happy Birthday.
Chen, one of the evening's speakers, has been involved with the competition since inception, and spoke about the value of and the need for innovation in Jamaican art.
"I'd like to be driving down Hanover Street one day," said Chen, "and just happen to see some performance art, or a video projection on the side of some abandoned building."
Chen was applauded by Bauer and others for his emphatic and unwavering support of the island's young creative talent over the years.
Also in attendance was Spain's ambassador to Jamaica, Jesus Silva, who Chen says is a big supporter of the arts.
