Celia
Alyssa Gilbert’s theatrically staged portrait tells the story of Caymanian slave woman, Long Celia, who was put on trial in 1820 and publicly punished with fifty lashes after being found guilty of supposedly inciting revolution. Drawing attention to the struggles endured by Cayman’s enslaved population, Gilbert commemorates this dark chapter in our Islands’ history – visually elevating her chosen protagonist to heroic status, while suggesting the ways in which Long Celia’s story continues to inform Caymanian identity in the present.
About the Artist
Alyssa Janae Gilbert
Alyssa Janae (Gilbert) is a multidisciplinary fashion designer born and raised in Grand Cayman. Having developed an early affinity for styling and designing clothes, she went on to acquire a certification in Fashion Photography from Central Saint Martins, London and a bachelor’s degree from London College of Fashion. Today, Gilbert combines her knowledge and experiences across fashion photography and styling, creative direction, modelling, and production in order to share Cayman’s rich cultural history with audiences through her work. Gilbert’s styling work has been featured in several international magazines such as Mob Journal and Moevir. Her work was recently featured at the National Gallery in Conversations with the Past in the Present Tense: 3rd Cayman Islands Biennial (2023), where she was the Emerging Artist Award winner.
