Portrait of Susanna Conolly of East End, 1838
Broad and Ebanks partnered for the National Gallery’s 21st Century Cayman exhibition in 2010, which sought to bridge traditional Caymanian craftwork and contemporary art. Broad had been struck by the dignified pose of the subject looking into the camera from a bygone age and wanted to use the organic materials of thatch and chalk to resurrect her image reaching back into the nineteenth century and bringing her forward to the twenty-first.
About the Artist
John Broad
b. 1947
John Broad graduated from Edinburgh College of Art with a degree in painting and drawing, and from the University of London with a teaching qualification. He taught art in Vanuatu, in the South Pacific, before settling in the Cayman Islands. His work is influenced by the Islands’ maritime culture and is recognisable for its loose brushwork and bold palette. Broad has taught in local schools and at University College of the Cayman Islands and has run numerous workshops on behalf of the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands and the Visual Arts Society. In addition, he has created two commissioned murals in George Town (The Walls of History in 2004 for NGCI and Fort George for the National Trust in 2012), and in 2009 was chosen to exhibit in London and Berlin with Art Below. Previously, Broad won the Carib Art poster competition in 1992 and was a recipient of the CNCF award for achievement in art education, as well as for his contribution to the arts of the Cayman Islands in 2003. His work was featured in the prestigious international travelling exhibition Carib Art (1995), and many NGCI exhibitions including Founded Upon the Seas (2012), Art of Assemblage (2013), All Access (2015), Saltwater in their Veins (2017), Upon the Seas (2017), Mediating Self (2017), Cross Currents – 1st Cayman Islands Biennial (2019), and Island of Women: Life at Home During our Maritime Years (2020).
About the Artist
Rose May Ebanks
b. 1951
Born in West Bay, Grand Cayman, Rose May Ebanks was taught thatching techniques by her mother, who in turn had been taught by her own mother. A prolific weaver who creates mainly traditional functional items, she regularly demonstrates the craft at local arts festivals such as Art@Governor’s and CNCF’s Red Sky at Night cultural festival. Her work is included in the permanent collections of NGCI and Cayman Islands National Museum and was featured in NGCI’s exhibitions Merging Cultures (2003), 21st Century Cayman (2010), All Access (2015), Revive: Contemporary Caymanian Craft (2017), and Island of Women: Life at Home During our Maritime Years (2020).
