Catboat in Shelter
One of a series of works by Long depicting the once ubiquitous catboat, here the artist focuses on the interlacing branches of the catboat shelter itself. These simple structures were once a common sight along the shoreline of all three islands and can still be seen on coastal stretches in the more remote districts of North Side and Cayman Brac. Long’s dramatic contrast of light and shade emphasises the oppressive heat of the midday sunshine, as well as the cool respite found under the shaded canopy of the shelter’s silver thatch palm roof. Often depicting solitary figures set against an expanse of sea or a backdrop of tropical foliage, here Long’s fisherman gazes out wistfully at the placid surface of the inner lagoon and the breaking reef beyond.
About the Artist
Charles Long
b. 1948
Born in West Africa, Charles Long grew up in Swaziland and England, where he attended Farnham School of Art. He settled in the Cayman Islands in the late 1960s and became a founding member and first secretary of the Visual Art Society. Long has been dubbed a “chronicler of our times”, a phrase that became the title of a 2002 retrospective of his work at NGCI. Other key exhibitions include the Santo Domingo Biennale (2003) and Carifesta X in Guyana (2008). Long’s highly collectable work forms part of the permanent collections of NGCI and the Cayman Islands National Museum. NGCI exhibitions include the solo show Charles Long – Chronicler of Our Time (2002), Portrait of an Artist (2003), All Access (2015), Mediating Self (2017), Tropical Visions (2019), and Island of Women: Life at Home During our Maritime Years (2020).
