Christine Bachew-Lorde finds strength in art

Ready to show the world and herself what she is capable of, artist Christine Bachew-Lorde will be exhibiting some of her work during the Christmas season.

Bachew-Lorde, 52, who is also a senior art director at an advertising agency, told WMN before the pandemic she did not often paint, because of a busy career at the agency as well as chronic migraines, which she has suffered since the age of five.

She said in advertising, she has had to conform to the ideas of clients and society, and could not express herself in the way she wanted. Her art is a way to release anxiety and cope with the pain of a migraine. Art helps her to express herself and her feelings, and allows her to be free.

Her exhibition Awakening will showcase ten-12 pieces of oil, acrylic and mixed media on canvas and paper. Although the date is not yet set, it will be at the Soapy Days soap studio, Tragarete Road, Woodbrook at her usual end-of-year pop-up shop, where she sells her jewellery and painted bottles.

“To me it is an awakening, of me showing the rest of the world that other aspect of me.”

Bachew-Lorde said she started painting and drawing during the pandemic. Because she could not go to the hospital as frequently as she used to to treat her migraines, she started using art to distract herself from the pain. She thought up a lot of different concepts and began to draw them.

“It’s my way of managing that part of the pain, because when I have a migraine my face gets twisted, my jaw locks, I can’t see properly and my shoulder on one side tightens up. And I'm always mostly in the hospital and on drips and strong medication.

“So when I come home, I'm usually kind of down. And sometimes the migraine lasts for three or four days. I'm usually just fighting to be present.

"So I just started to draw to release that anxiety that I feel from it.”

The migraines affect every aspect of her life, and she uses art as a way to fight off depression. But, she said, her health issues are small in comparison to those of her twin brother, Ralph Bachew. He has dystonia, a movement disorder that causes the muscles to contract involuntarily, as well as migraines. She believes if he could function and have a life, she should fight against feeling sorry for herself and find a positive way to cope.

Art has been a constant for Bachew-Lorde, from when she was a young girl growing up in Laventille to now being an art director living in “the west.”

She recalled entering art competitions when she attended Mucurapo Girls' RC Primary School, and her disappointment when her guidance counsellor at St James Government Secondary School did not choose art as one of her subjects. So when she heard about a pilot programme in graphic arts at John S Donaldson Technical Institute, Port of Spain, now a University of TT campus, she decided to do the diploma.

“My father always used to say I would starve as an artist. I figured if I could get into advertising I could at least get to draw there or get to show my ideas and concepts, and to be able to express my creativity.

“We had this short one-month programme to get this diploma, and we learned about many different types of media and art concepts. That was the only way that I could get into advertising, because, back then, there were no art schools here and my parents couldn't afford to send me away to do art at a university. So I was looking for any avenue to get into advertising.”

At that time she also apprenticed part-time for a year with jewellery designer Rachel Ross. Eventually she was hired as a junior graphic designer at a local advertising agency, where she worked for about eight years.

She then heard about and applied for a job in St Lucia. She thought she was going to be a simple graphic artist at a new ad agency but, when she got there, she found out she was the new manager of the art department. Then she worked as the creative director of a women’s travel and fashion magazine with the same company.

After ten years in St Lucia, Bachew-Lorde returned to TT in 2009 and decided to get back into advertising. She recalled sending out dozens of job applications and got only one response.

Fortunately, one was all she needed and she became a senior art director at the advertising agency where she still works. At that time, she said she had to readjust her thinking for the new job.

“Because I was older, coming into the agencies where there were younger people, I realised I needed to be more marketable and to be able to be an asset.”

In 2013, she started a six-year part-time graphic-arts degree at Costaatt. She recalled being scared and nervous because she was one of the oldest people in her class, but it allowed her to start to creating again.

“I always wanted to do a degree. I wanted to prove to everybody else and myself that I could do it. Because when I went to St James Secondary I didn't get all my passes. And then I had to go straight into working to help pay bills and find a job and get into advertising with a diploma. I never had that qualification, and I didn't do art in school either, so I wanted to prove to myself that I was capable of getting that degree.”

She remembers getting home late almost every night, either from class or studying and doing projects, and expressed gratitude to her understanding and supportive partner.

She also built a support group of people who gave her notes and other class information when she missed a class due to migraines, which had got worse by that time. She told WMN if she got a migraine while at work, she would take a painkiller. If it did not ease the pain, she would visit a doctor close to her office during her lunch hour for a pain-management injection. She would then return to the office and wait for the pain to subside before continuing her work. If the pain made her vomit and she became dehydrated, the doctor would give her pain medication in IV form and she would return to work with the IV attached.

“I had my mortgage and bills to pay. I had to figure out a way to work with it. I had to find a way to come up with a plan that would help me try to live near-to-normal life.

“I think it's pure will on my end that I just learned to deal with this since I was a child. I don't know if it's mental fortitude, or if it's because my mom and dad were always supportive. Just knowing that they would be there for me gave me the ability to fight through.”

Making jewellery and painting glass bottles were also methods she used to help her process her emotions during and after a migraine. The bottle-painting came about when she was in St Lucia. She made ponche de creme for some of her friends and wanted to personalise the bottles so she painted them. The recipients loved both and often requested more.

When she returned to TT, she continued painting bottles and started making jewellery using material she recycled. She said this served a three-fold purpose, as she was able to give them to friends and family as gifts, help the environment and ensure she saw the positives in her life, all at the same time.

“John D was a good stepping point, because it opened my eyes to the possibilities of what you could do with art.”

One day a friend told her about the artisan market Bits and Pieces, where she started selling her Pix•ie Bits Crafts and Christine Wearable Art brands.

“There are amazing people that live all over the country. And it doesn't matter what area you're from. When you have belief in yourself and you have the support, you can accomplish anything. You have to fight to believe in yourself and not let society’s limitations keep you down.

“And I hope, so far, I have had a positive impact on the world. What I’m trying to highlight is that adversity has made me stronger.

"It’s not where you started in life, it’s where you finish. I always tell myself, when you change your perspective, you change the world.”