US-based Trini artist connects to Caribbean heritage

There is a saying that, “Carnival is colour.”

The same could be said for the work of artist Beverly Valdez whose passion for the Caribbean in general, and Carnival in particular, is showcased in her new collection of paintings.

The vivid, rich colours; each visible brush stroke; the overlapping tints, tones and shades; and the shapes and textures captured by Valdez tell the story of life in the Caribbean.

In her second solo exhibition, Caribbean Expressions, Valdez will be showing 50 paintings she created over the past year at Horizons Art Gallery, Mucurapo Road, St James, from February 11 to 29.

She said the paintings are acrylics, watercolour, collage, and mixed media on synthetic paper, canvas, and wood. She also uses a variety of techniques including hand-painting paper and incorporating that into the paintings to capture the vibrancy and details of Carnival – its movement, colours, textures, traditional characters, fetes, and even J’Ouvert.

“I have a basic idea of what I want but the process is organic. So when I paint I never know what the piece is going to look like because it really comes from within. I use colours and techniques, but I don’t plan it out in the beginning.”

Valdez said she travelled a lot through the Caribbean and the experiences all “seeped in.” She said because of the many commonalities the images sometimes merged, creating an overall impression rather than individual ideas.

“Strongly influenced by my Caribbean heritage, my paintings are abstract interpretations and recollections of my Caribbean experiences. They are inspired by the colours, history, culture, architecture, and vibrancy of the celebrations in TT. My memories of TT are saturated with colour and I transform them into bold, expressive visual statements... It has always stayed with me. Trinis outside of TT tend to hold on tight to the culture. It’s really precious to us.”

She said the exhibition has a few pieces that are black and white or monochrome but even then, different shades of that one colour are used.

Valdez has lived in Maryland in the US for the past 40 years but was born in Woodbrook and frequently visits her family in TT.

She has a bachelor's and master’s degrees in fine arts from Howard University in Washington DC and established a career in graphic design. She worked as a creative director for over 25 years at several private design and communications institutions, including companies that worked with the National Institutes of Health and the International Monetary Fund.

In 2012, the National Institutes of Health commissioned a painting on HIV and Aids in the Caribbean from her.

“That’s when I first went back into dabbling into painting. And that painting was presented to the government of The Bahamas as a gift from the United States. That’s when I decided to start this again.”

She said painting was like riding a bicycle, but she still attended community classes with US artists such as Beverly Ryan, Marsha Staiger and Joyce McCarten to hone her skills.

In 2017, she decided to leave her job and follow her passion. She started painting for herself.

“I was going to follow my passion, be happy, and work for myself. Because it’s like a relaxing, spiritual experience and that has been totally satisfying to me. As a creative director I worked with designers and clients to satisfy their needs. This way I’m doing what I want to do, what comes from the heart.”

Soon after she participated in exhibits at the TT embassy in Washington DC, as well as several others in Maryland and other states in the US, and people started collecting her work. However, her first solo show was at Horizons in 2019.

She said she is “all about colour” and described herself as a colourist. She has always been drawn to colour because it inspires and brings out a passion in her, as well as connects her to TT and the Caribbean. She is also inspired by Carnival ever since her days as a student at Bishop Anstey High School.

Valdez said she intends to continue painting and possibly have a show in the US. She also hopes to one day get involved in art with children, not necessarily to teach them but to collaborate with them in some form.