The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands (NGCI) will welcome local artist Gordon Solomon to teach two Walkers Art Clubs in Cayman Brac this term.
Benefiting over 300 students annually the afterschool art programme, kindly sponsored by Walkers, include pre-schoolers, primary school students, secondary school students, young people with special needs, teens who are studying for their final exams as well as students from Cayman Brac. Through a combination of hands-on instruction and individual experimentation with art foundation principles, children learn techniques, art history, self-confidence and how to form and articulate opinions about the work they are creating. In addition to individual art projects, students work collaboratively on group projects which connect participants to one another across socio-cultural divides and encourage them to appreciate the unique abilities of their peers.
This March the Walkers Art Clubs in Cayman Brac (Spots Bay Primary School and West End Primary School) will welcome local artist Gordon Solomon who has recently returned to Cayman Brac to reside permanently. Solomon will be teaching students his technique ‘Spots of Light’ and each class will aim to complete a 36”x24” canvas which will be on display at the National Gallery, in Grand Cayman this coming May as part of the annual Walkers Art Club exhibition.
NGCI Sister Island Office, Simone Scott explains, “It is wonderful that we now have a member of the ‘Native Sons’ artist collective living on the Brac. Gordon Solomon will be able to come into the classes and share his story, style, and artistic knowledge with students. We thank Walkers for their continued sponsorship of this great programme and I cannot wait to see the pieces that students will produce.”
Artist and NGCI Art Instructor, Solomon says, “It’s a privilege to continue teaching and encouraging the arts, now through the Walkers Art Club in Cayman Brac. As an artist and teacher I hope to inspire students and adults alike to express themselves with art, believe in themselves through art, and become one, through art. The more we nurture healthy avenues of expression the more we grow into our positive selves. Thank you National Gallery and Walkers for making this opportunity available to myself and to the people of Cayman Brac.”
For more information about the Walkers Art Clubs in Cayman Brac and in Grand Cayman please contact the National Gallery Education Department at education@nationalgallery.org.ky or call (345) 945 8111.
Ship Comes In (2010) by Gordon Solomon. Part of the National Gallery’s Permanent Art Collection and now on display as part of the NGCI maritime exhibition series Saltwater in their Veins.