Cross Currents – 1st Cayman Islands Biennial

The Little Cayman extension of the multi-site project Cross Currents – 1^st Cayman Islands Biennial featured work by Julie Corsetti, Davin Ebanks, Kaitlyn Elphinstone, Kathryn Elphinstone, Paige Jordison, Claire Musser, Marianna Szekely, and Jeremy Walton. Running concurrently with the main exhibition in our central venue in Grand Cayman, and similarly supported by Butterfield, the Little Cayman Museum hosted works with a maritime and environmental focus.

Honouring tradition while reinvigorating historical themes, these seven artists each commented, in their own distinct way, on our complex relationship with the environment. Some sought to capture light and water in their purist aesthetic forms or to visually convey intangibles such as the passage of time and the fluidity of memory, while others attempted to critically engage as active participants in this fluid, evolving relationship.

Through their innovative use of new media and techniques, as well as their engagement with timely social, political, and environmental concerns, the artists in Cross Currents offered a window into contemporary art on these shores.

About the Biennial

Developed and hosted by the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands, and supported by Butterfield, the Biennial project featured artwork by 42 Cayman artists across sites in Grand Cayman (at the National Gallery’s venue), Little Cayman (Little Cayman Museum), and Cayman Brac (various venues). The project sought to showcase the high calibre of work currently practised in the Cayman Islands and to challenge the boundaries of contemporary Caymanian art. The Biennial was accompanied by an extensive education programme of workshops, school tours, panel discussions, screenings, and lectures, with an aim to spark dialogue between artists, educators as well as the viewing public.