Minister of Creative Economy, Culture and Sports, John King, is committed to finding spaces for artists to display their work.
Speaking at the first in a series of exhibitions being held at the Ministry, Mr. King promised that the foyer would be used as a place where visual artists could showcase their pieces.
He said it was being done in an effort to enhance the creative economy, by making these artists more visible, as his Ministry continues to pursue the mandate of “creating an enabling environment that supports the development of the creative economy”.
The Culture Minister also promised that the Board of the National Art Gallery would soon be in place, which would bring them one step closer to establishing a home for the institution.
“Once the National Art Gallery is completed, government-owned exhibition spaces would be accessible to local artists. We expect that this would result in an increased number of galleries which are available to our artists, which would, in turn, lead to an increased number of exhibitions being held throughout the year,” he stated.
Mr. King explained that the five artists whose work was currently on display were experienced, and possessed vast knowledge that could assist and encourage those with little or no experience. He said this passing on of knowledge could redound to the benefit of Barbados.
“My desire is to see the creative economy in Barbados expand and grow similarly to that of other regions, such as in the USA and Europe, in which this sector of the economy makes a substantial contribution to GDP,” he shared.
The exhibition continues at the Ministry of Creative Economy, Culture and Sports, weekdays from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., until Friday, September 20. It features the work of artists Deanne Kennedy, Martina Pilé, Ann Rudder, Ricardo Skeete and Laura Ward.