Betwixt and Between – Two Young Artists from Guadeloupe

Tactile, multidimensional and emotional environments are what concern sculptor Karine Gabon in her art. She approaches her work in a highly philosophical way with an objective of creating manifestations of the Caribbean being and to contextualize this in the larger world. The multidimensional nature of the work reflects, in part, the number of identities that make up a human being. “Painting does not interest me,” she says, “because it is too flat.” One could imagine, therefore, that the layers of materials in her work carry layers of meaning. The materials themselves are often natural elements of the earth. For instance, in the series that she began in 2005 entitled Zemis (the figurines associated with the Amerindian worship system in the Caribbean) the works are out of wood and jute, often painted with symbols reminiscent of the First Peoples of the Caribbean. Her choice of working along a vertical plane in the series also helped her to explore a sort of totemic “heaven to earth” Caribbean spirituality. The negative space is as important as the positive in this series since it contributes equally to the totality of the work.

On an exterior level, she often aims to establish a sense of Caribbean identity – “C’est important de se situer par apport le monde.” (It’s important to establish one’s identity vis-à-vis the rest of the world). But the personal psychological impact of the work is equally important to her; she also wishes to have viewers locate her work in a Caribbean emotional space. She recalls observing a visitor who came to one of her exhibitions: he stared continually at one particular work for several minutes, and as if connecting with the work in an intensely personal way. She felt that she had moved something in him and for her that is what the whole process is about. She in fact wants to conjure up “une alchemie interiéure - celui qui a une connaissance de la vie intérieure” (an interior alchemy - that which has an understanding of one’s inner life).

Her series entitled Enfants Sorcières is different in that the fourteen tall, semi-abstract forms made of metal, including found objects, seek to conjure up the images of deprived, debilitated children, yet children who maintain their pride. Although radically different in scale and form, it attempts to capture the psyche of the child (the interior alchemy) rather than his or her exterior circumstances.

Thierry Bergame is another young Guadeloupan artist who explores the human psyche through his work. He approach to his art, however, is vastly different from that of Gabon. He calls his work a cross between Golderack – animation which is close to the Japanime (Japanese animation genre), the French 19th century painter Edouard Manet who was a precursor to and part of the Impressionist movement and British 20th century painter David Hockney. As a practicing graphic illustrator, he tends to gravitate towards pop-art iconography, which is one of his main influences. But as cartoon-like as his art may seem, Bergame is concerned with the notion of the French Caribbean versus the rest of the Caribbean, and, in turn, “Caribbeanness” versus universality. “On fait parti d’un tout” or, “One is part of an all encompassing whole”, he says, and he wants to communicate this in the work. For the last three or four years, he has also worked on the theme of “evanessence”, or, as he puts it, human truths. To explore this, he often investigates the nude and clothed forms of black women. In general, however, he is concerned with the relationship of Guadeloupe with itself, the rest of the Caribbean, and the rest of the world.