Knolly Greenidge's art to go on show

Knolly Greenidge’s Two Homes, a 1990 watercolour depiction of a pair of rural dwellings, most likely in the artist’s native southwest Trinidad, is presented with an overall reddish hue, with the houses and tree in bronze and a pinkish tinge to the sky.

It is a mind-opening look at the more challenging lives of Trinidad and Tobago’s less-endowed, from just over a generation ago – before concrete, rather than wood, started being used for even the most simple of buildings, a media release said.

In another painting, architectural heritage of a more urban sort is present in Woodford Square, a 1972 work from Allan King that takes one right into the heart of downtown Port of Spain, where, even after 50 years, one can get a similar feel of one of the city’s main attractions. Then, as today, there is a constant flow of people in and out of the square, people hanging out in the famous bandstand, while yet others prefer to pause on Knox Street, right across from Port of Spain City Hall.

The release said the paintings will share a further connection in December, when they will feature as part of an exhibition headlined by Greenidge and dominated by several smaller works by the artist, with paintings by King, Geoffrey Holder and Dermot Louison also included. These Knolly Greenidge works, including “a rare oil painting,” the event’s organisers said, will all be on sale.

The exhibition will be launched at the 101 Art Gallery in Newtown on December 3 and 4, with a schedule of activities between 12 pm and 4 pm on both days. Viewings can be arranged by contacting Dulce Nieves at 101 Art Gallery.

Visitors will be confronted by the history of Greenidge, who displayed a predilection for art while at primary school, though it wasn’t until he was 23, in 1960, three years after he had become a member of the Southern Art Society, that his career finally took off, the release said. He learned a lot from fellow society member Bro Fergus Griffin (Irish) of Presentation College, San Fernando, as well as established local artist Isaiah James Boodhoo, while he developed his own semi-abstract style.

Greenidge’s watercolour and oil paintings were focused on Trinidad’s societal and cultural heritage, mostly from a rural point of view, while urban scenes also factored in his list of works. The vitality of many of his human figures, from dancers to pannists, has been admired by collectors in England, Germany, France, Scotland, Canada, the US and Brazil.