I am a life Artist if there is such a thing. Prior to the pandemic, I was painting whenever I got the chance. Now it's all I do. During the pandemic I was both frustrated and elated. This was partly due to my life (apartment, job, earnings) being rudely interrupted by the pandemic and partly due to the curious idea of what it would be like working only as an artist. Certainly that's not something to complain about considering how many lives were lost and further considering how lucky I was to travel back home safely. The anxiety and questions came shortly after. I was bothered with the question, how do I restart my life?"
Frantically searching for jobs proved quite unfruitful. I recall listening to a podcast that mentioned we were born abundant with gifts that will always provide for us. Unlike some people I knew what those gifts were.
I started painting and pushing my art to the limit. This resulted in an entirely new body of works around the theme Black lives, women's empowerment, culture and what it means to be Caribbean. I started using fabric in my art and liked the results I got. I guess it's because my mother is a seamstress so I gravitate towards fabric as an alternative for paints. I usually work with acrylics or oils on canvas. Art is my passion but so are music and singing.
Having lived in China for a period of 10 years where I completed both an undergraduate and master's degree scholarship in diplomacy, one would think that I'd be lucky to apply those skills today. Now I know that's far from the truth. While I hate to waste knowledge I believe diplomacy goes beyond the traditional ideals to grassroots level which is just as good or even more effective. I dapple with the idea of art diplomacy while having represented Grenada in China on numerous occasions at annual exhibitions and biennials.
Sometimes as humans we fail to acknowledge just how much life skills we have gathered. What I learn as well is when you don't teach what you know; you are keeping a generation of young minds from sharing in your rich experiences. Life should be about passing on knowledge and sharing. I am grateful to China for the extent of skills I gained as a student and during my latter times spent there as a teacher. Half of me is impacted by a very different culture which has enriched my experiences and taught me to be more sympathetic, tolerant and multicultural. I want to be able to express these through my art. I also want to empower others to find their passion and then the confidence to know that with effort they can bud.
I am quite motivated and enthusiastic about just waking up each day. As a creative, I realize just how important it is to be able to embrace change, evolve and innovate. When changes come, and they do, we the creators although undervalued are always here to discover the colors in a black and white world. The future is creativity.
Apart from painting, I am also taking a diploma course in theatre and acting. I want to resume teaching drama, even for a few days each month. I missed doing that. That's another thing in the pipeline. I am also involved in singing and music so it's all coming together nicely. I do want reliable and like-minded people I can work with. I have a few in mind who are determined to create the change we need. I often think of the theatre as underutilized. It's quite sad that there are more funerals than productions. I am even more saddened by the fact that we don't have a national art gallery. We certainly have not realized how lucrative art is. This needs to change.
I am now juggling teaching art classes and constantly working on creating art for art exhibitions. The next show will actually be this Saturday at the Radisson Grenada Beach Resort from 3 pm to 7 pm. There will be a Pop-up exhibition I am working on with four other Artists. So it will be a chilled afternoon of tea, music and art. You will get to meet the artists and speak with them. I am quite excited about the event which is also sponsored by the Netherlands Insurance, a big supporter of the arts! Come on out but you first need to call the hotel to reserve your spot.
In conclusion, I am enjoying every moment of being creative and really enjoy applying my self-taught marketing skills to what I do. If you wish to follow me I am on Instagram as @triciabethelart and on Facebook with the same name. I look forward to seeing you at the Radisson Art show!
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