Untitled (Schooner Under Sail)
Sibley’s image departs from the often-idealised depictions of tranquil beachscapes that were so prevalent among artists working in Cayman in the 1980s and early 1990s. Here, Sibley is drawn to the dramatic effect of a nor’wester — with stormy seas and a darkening sky adding to the pictorial interest of the scene, in which the eye is drawn to the elegant profile of a tall-masted sailing ship in the distance, as well as the huddled figures and small fishing boat in the foreground.
About the Artist
Joanne Sibley
b. 1930
Joanne Sibley arrived in the Cayman Islands from Canada in 1980 after living in Jamaica, where she had established herself as a successful artist. An interior designer by trade, Sibley has a signature style highly influenced by her formal training in architectural rendering. She has become one of the Islands’ most prolific and recognisable artists and was awarded the 1995 Creativity Prize by CNCF. Her work is featured in Art of the Cayman Islands, the Islands’ first formal art history (Scala Fine Art Publishers Ltd.: Fall 2016). NGCI exhibitions include the solo show Watermarks (2005), Faces and Figures (2007), Our Story of Art (2013), Metamorphoses (2014), All Access (2015), A Legacy of Light (2016), Mediating Self (2017), Tropical Visions (2019), Seascapes: Maritime Art from the National Collection in Little Cayman (2020) at the Little Cayman Museum, Saltwater in Their Veins (2020) and The People’s Collection: A 25-Year Cultural Legacy (2022).
