Exhibition
Presenting the work of renowned Caymanian artist Bendel Hydes, Soundings marked the pioneering artist’s first major solo exhibition at the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands. Comprised of a series of 28 works created between the years of 1989 – 2001, the exhibition primarily foregrounded the artist’s iconic large-scale oil paintings, alongside a selection of smaller mixed media works on prepared paper. Notably, many of the paintings on display focused on Hydes’ transition from his earlier representational style to that of his signature technique of ‘luminescent abstraction’, with several works from his Ironshore, Tropical Plants, Soundings in Fathoms, and Source series featured prominently throughout.
Thematically, the exhibition meditated on questions of identity and belonging, providing a visual analogue to the artist’s explorations of his Caymanian heritage and his relationship to his adopted home in the United States. Revealing the conceptual complexity of the artist’s practice as well as his innate curiosity, the featured works highlighted Hydes’ compositional experimentation and perpetual desire to push the boundaries of the creative process.
Soundings was on view from 11 October – 27 December 2003 at the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands’ former location in Harbour Place. During this time, the Gallery held a related programme of events, including a workshop, dinner, and lecture led by the artist.
About the Artist
Bendel Hydes
1952–2024
Bendel Hydes was universally celebrated as the founding father of Caymanian art, being the first Caymanian to acquire formal fine art training and the first to receive international acclaim for his work, while also helping to cofound both the Cayman National Cultural Foundation and the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands. Hydes studied at Liverpool College of Art and Canterbury College of Art in England and subsequently received his B.A. from Clark University in the United States in 1976.
During the course of his career, he mounted solo exhibitions at the Commonwealth Institute, London and the 23rd International Bienal de Sao Paulo, Brazil, and his work has been featured in numerous publications, including Caribbean Art (Thames and Hudson: 1998) and A-Z of Caribbean Art (Robert & Christopher Publishers: 2019). Hydes’ work was included in two of the most prestigious surveys of Caribbean art of the past three decades: Carib Art (1995-96) and Caribbean Visions: Contemporary Painting and Sculpture (1995-98), which travelled to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Works by Hydes are held in the collections of the Cayman Islands National Museum and the Cayman Islands National Archive, as well as numerous private collections internationally.
Solo exhibitions at the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands include Soundings in Fathoms (2003), Circumnavigating the Globe (2012) and Bendel Hydes- A Retrospective (2019)— the latter a comprehensive survey of the artist’s fifty-year career. Additionally, Hydes work has featured in numerous group exhibitions at NGCI, including: Founded Upon the Seas (2012), Metamorphoses (2014), Upon the Seas (2017), Cross Currents – 1st Cayman Islands Biennial (2019), Tropical Visions (2019), Saltwater in their Veins – A National Gallery Permanent Collection Exhibition (2020), The People’s Collection – A 25-Year Cultural Legacy (2022), The Ties that Bind: A Journey through the National Collection (2022), 81° West: Cartographic Explorations in Contemporary Caymanian Art (2023) and Thatch Roofs & Ironwood Posts: The Art and Artistry of the Caymanian Home (2024).
