Grand Cayman Island was the first port on my Caribbean cruise. While other cruise-goers were eager to swim with stingrays or snorkel at Seven Mile Beach, I decided to check out the art at The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands.

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Grand Cayman Island was the first port on my Caribbean cruise. While other cruise-goers were eager to swim with stingrays or snorkel at Seven Mile Beach, I decided to check out the art at The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands.

Most Caymanians are of mixed African and European ancestry, and the official language is English, which makes communicating easy for the average mono-linguistic American.

The Caymans have the highest standard of living in the Caribbean. The nation's low tax rates have famously led to it being used as a tax haven for corporations; there are 100,000 companies registered in the Cayman Islands, more than the population of just under 80,000.

Current exhibitions at the The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands featured the work of native Caymanians.

The Ties That Bind exhibition (through March 24, 2023) explores the multiple ways in which Caymanian artists have depicted the Islands' rich cultural legacy.

The Silver Thatch palm is Cayman's national tree and offers a foundation for weaving a variety of artistically created, utilitarian items:

Top L-R: Utility Basket, 2019 by Elizabeth 'Lizzie' Powell (b. 1937); and Thatch Basket, c.2017 by Rose May Ebanks (b. 1951). Woven from silver thatch palm, these are examples of traditional Caymanian thatch weaving and the commonly used baskets that were worn across the body for carrying provisions.

Bottom, L-R: Thatch Rope Cart, 2012, by Marlena Anglin (b. 1933). Wood silver thatch rope. This cart is a typical example of the traditional devices once used to twist silver thatch rope. From the 1800s until the 1960s the rope making industry provided a major source of income in Cayman reaching its height in 1964 when 1.3 million fathoms of rope were exported. Prior to the industry's decline in the late 1960s the rope making process was often a family activity with women gathering and twisting the thatch and children helping to turn the strands. Basket with Utensils. 2013 by Marlena Anglin. Silver thatch palm. This basket and assortment of practical utensils including a thatch bristle brush. The grouping spotlights the various functional uses of silver thatch products in everyday Caymanian life.

We Can Beat the Storm, 1993, by Miguel Powery:

Old Time by Stewart Holmes depicts a woman cleaning conch shells, a laborious task. The conch is important in Caymanian culture as a food and decorative accent in traditional sand yards, and recently as tourist souvenirs.

Harbour Drive by Joanne Sibley depicts the George Town harbour in the mid-1990s before the large cruise ships began to arrive. Most of these buildings are no longer there, however, the one with the red roof is the oldest surviving public structure in the Cayman Islands, and is now the site of the National Museum.

Looking Glass by Simon Tatum refers to the traditional device used by Caymanian fishermen to spy turtles underwater. In this self-portrait, it also symbolizes the quest for self-knowledge.

Sewing Lady, by Margaret Barwick depicts a woman engaging in domestic labor in a traditional Caymanian cottage; women were the backbone of the Islands' community.

Another exhibition, Miss Lassie: An Intuitive Spirit, was curated by Daniela Granados Solis in partnership with the Cayman National Cultural Foundation. Daniela personally guided me around the whole museum.

A fourth-generation Caymanian, Miss Lassie's primitive artistic practice began at the age of 62, following what she described as a transformational 'visionary experience'. She began decorating everything in her wattle and daub cottage with vibrant blends of cultural and religious imagery, with what she called "markings."

The Ten Sails by Miss Lassie depicts the historic shipwreck event that occurred off the East End of Grand Cayman on 8 February 1794. Ten ships that were part of a convoy on its way from Jamaica to the United States and Britain wrecked on the surrounding reef. Local residents braved the stormy waters and successfully rescued most of the ships' crews and passengers.

Why Are Ye Gazing Up in the Sky is a celebratory illustration of the ascension of Jesus as he triumphantly returns to heaven, witnessed by eleven disciples. Note the three dimensional treatment of the noses.

Miss Lassie's primitive style is akin to the works of America's Grandma Moses, and Nova Scotia's Maud Lewis.

Outdoors at the museum you can enjoy a sculpture garden and walk the Dianne Siebens Memorial labyrinth.

The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands

Physical address: Esterly Tibbetts Hwy | Grand Cayman | Cayman Islands

Mailing Address: PO Box 10197 | KY1-1002 | Cayman Islands

Phone +1 (345) 945 8111

www.nationalgallery.org.ky

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Authors Website: http://www.OceanViewArts.com

Authors Bio:

Meryl Ann Butler is an artist, author, educator and OpedNews Managing Editor who has been actively engaged in utilizing the arts as stepping-stones toward joy-filled wellbeing since she was a hippie. She began writing for OpEdNews in Feb, 2004. She became a Senior Editor in August 2012 and Managing Editor in January, 2013. In June, 2015, the combined views on her articles, diaries and quick link contributions topped one million. She was particularly happy that her article about Bree Newsome removing the Confederate flag was the one that put her past the million mark.

Her art in a wide variety of media can be seen on her YouTube video, "Visionary Artist Meryl Ann Butler on Creativity and Joy" at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcGs2r_66QE

A NYC native, her response to 9-11 was to pen an invitation to healing through creativity, entitled, "90-Minute Quilts: 15+ Projects You Can Stitch in an Afternoon" (Krause 2006), which is a bestseller in the craft field. The sequel, MORE 90-Minute Quilts: 20+ Quick and Easy Projects With Triangles and Squares was released in April, 2011. Her popular video, How to Stitch a Quilt in 90 Minutes with Meryl Ann Butler can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrShGOQaJQ8

She has been active in a number of international, arts-related projects as a citizen diplomat, and was arts advisor to Baltimore's CIUSSR (Center for Improving US-Soviet Relations), 1987-89. She made two trips to the former USSR in 1987 and 1988 to speak to artists, craftpeople and fashion designers on the topic of utilizing the arts as a tool for global wellbeing. She created the historical "First US-Soviet Children's Peace Quilt Exchange Project" in 1987-88, which was the first time a reciprocal quilt was given to the US from the former USSR.

Her artwork is in collections across the globe.

Meryl Ann is a founding member of The Labyrinth Society and has been building labyrinths since 1992. She publishes an annual article about the topic on OpEdNews on World Labyrinth Day, the first Saturday in May.

OpEdNews Senior Editor Joan Brunwasser interviewed Meryl Ann in "Beyond Surviving: How to Thrive in Challenging Times" at https://www.opednews.com/articles/Beyond-Surviving--How-to-by-Joan-Brunwasser-Anxiety_Appreciation_Coronavirus_Creativity-200318-988.html

Find out more about Meryl Ann's artistic life in "OEN Managing Ed, Meryl Ann Butler, Featured on the Other Side of the Byline" at https://www.opednews.com/Quicklink/OEN-Managing-Ed-Meryl-Ann-in-Life_Arts-Artistic_Artists_Quilt-170917-615.html

On Feb 11, 2017, Senior Editor Joan Brunwasser interviewed Meryl Ann in Pink Power: Sister March, Norfolk, VA at http://www.opednews.com/articles/Pink-Power-Sister-March--by-Joan-Brunwasser-Pussy-Hats-170212-681.html

"Creativity and Healing: The Work of Meryl Ann Butler" by Burl Hall is at
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Creativity-and-Healing--T-by-Burl-Hall-130414-18.html

Burl and Merry Hall interviewed Meryl Ann on their BlogTalk radio show, "Envision This," at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/envision-this/2013/04/11/meryl-ann-butler-art-as-a-medicine-for-the-soul

Archived articles www.opednews.com/author/author1820.html
Older archived articles, from before May 2005 are here.