Boy wonder

Culture Matters

DARA E HEALY

“SO DO not throw away your water or juice bottles. We can use them to make musical instruments like chac-chacs.”

“Recycling!” said the smallest boy, the person I least expected to hear say that word, far less make the connection so immediately.

I stared at him with my mouth open in a combination of exaggerated surprise and pride. Not only was he the only child to speak up in reference to what I was saying, he was the only one the following day to come with his home-made instrument.

This week, we immersed ourselves in indigenous culture as a vehicle for transformation. Vulnerable children from across our city and environs were given a chance to touch, feel and experience our Carnival, move their bodies and explore their world in a new way.

I noted with dismay that so many of them were uncomfortable with dancing; I thought all children, at least from TT, loved to dance. Daily, I watched as some of them came in, so tense – arms folded, faces set in a frown.

Clearly, for children so young, they have a great deal going on in their minds and in their lives. But then they get settled into our environment, and quickly relax as they fall into the creative sessions. Perhaps the most telling part is the spontaneous abundance of hugs, which they give at every chance – both boys and girls.

As I watched our little dramas unfold every day, I wondered again if we would ever truly prioritise the arts as a vehicle for change and empowerment.

One columnist wrote about the link between our focus on materialism and crime. That is, our education is increasingly geared towards a business or financial objective. What are you going to do with those subjects? What job are you going to get to be able to pay your bills and get a mortgage? So if your capabilities do not fit within this mould, what options do you have?

Our indigenous art forms offer young minds a chance to see possibilities beyond the rigid, exam-based structures. Yes, we have more arts in schools, but are we linking culture and entrepreneurship, arts with volunteerism or opening students up to global education and career options in the arts?

The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean recently published an extensive study looking at the creative industries as a source for progress and economic growth. According to their research, this sector can “leverage of the abundant talent and skill of Caribbean people and domestic capital to produce competitive products and services. In addition, the sector is comparatively labour intensive and can, therefore, help to alleviate the chronic unemployment problem in the Caribbean.”

Not surprisingly, the study indicates that “Caribbean countries have been underperforming in most segments of the creative industries, even when benchmarked against other developing countries of similar size and level of development.”

In TT, 2018 finds us not only struggling with accountability in our creative industries, but there continues to be a disconnect between the leadership of our major cultural bodies and what is needed by our society. For instance, one head is quoted as saying that “government has always funded Panorama, paying the judges, prize money, appearance fees for the bands, and transportation for them from Tobago to Trinidad.” However, is that not the definition of the problem?

Certainly, government should be involved as a main stakeholder of the arts, but our model for integrating arts into the society must be reviewed, to be more inclusive and geared towards serving development needs. Leadership remains the stumbling block at many levels, as the various elements of our creative industries grapple with 20th century modes of operating (or is it 18th century?) and 21st century realities.

In our small way, we continue the work. My little boy wonder is a changed person from that first day of registration; his face has literally opened up in front of us. His tiny frame seems to act not as an impediment but rather as an impetus to ingesting every scrap of learning we have to offer. He is at the front of the line for dancing, stories, mas-making – absorbing, learning, growing. As a child from a vulnerable community, he would not normally have this opportunity, and at an instinctual level he knows it.

I can barely wait to see what he does next week. But while I am proud to see the engagement, secretly, for me the best part is the hugs.

Dara Healy is a performance artist and founder of the NGO, the Indigenous Creative Arts Network – ICAN