Paula Lindo – Our histories, stories, present, future.

Visual artist and designer Shannon Alonzo’s latest exhibition, Imprint, runs from August 9 to 22 at the LOFTT Gallery, Rosalino Street, Woodbrook, Port-of-Spain. The exhibition features pieces which examine Caribbean identities, and will include an artist’s talk on August 17.

Alonzo said her artistic practice concerns the exploration of Caribbean identity, specifically the tension between stereotypical projections of the collective persona, and the desire to interpret an authentic representation of self. She said it’s important to explore Caribbean Identity because “I’ve spent considerable periods of my life outside Trinidad, and when I return home I’m always overwhelmed by how unique and precious our culture is. We often look to imitate the outside world, forgetting that what we have to offer is something that no one else can truly replicate. I think, in striving to preserve our history and by extension celebrate who we are, we can gain a greater sense of pride in our collective identity.”

The pieces being exhibited have been made with a variety of materials, predominantly pencil, fabric collage and beeswax sculpture. Alonzo said “old photographs have played an important role in the development of the work and so the choice of media and colour is a deliberate reflection of this. It is my hope that walking into the exhibit the audience feels like they are suspended somewhere between a sepia toned past and a vivid present. The use of beeswax, and sculpture in general, is a first for me, but I feel that the 3D representations add a new dimension to the understanding of the themes.”

Alonzo said her journey began with a love of both Caribbean history and design. “My background is in fashion design and I had often drifted into costuming over the years. Working on period pieces for plays, films, etc., gave me a renewed love for the way that people in our region used to dress and by extension used to live. It fascinates me how, even after a person has stopped wearing a piece of clothing, their story has been absorbed into the fabric of the garment. It communicates so much of the individual or even a collective story. The first piece that I worked on, Lowest Hanging Fruit, is a skirt whose layers have drawings that play off the ideas of a colonial vs post-colonial diet. From there, the rest of the body of work just seemed to flow. The name IMPRINT was the very last piece of the puzzle for this exhibit. Although I knew that I wanted to create a thread between past and present, I couldn’t seem to pinpoint the right word or phrase. My curator, Adeline Gregoire, commented on the work as relating to ‘intergenerational memory’, which struck a chord with me. I thought that imprint, being an impression or stamp, seemed like the perfect way to describe this concept.”

She said prices for the pieces are wide-ranging, “from the $100s for small fabric collages, to the $1,000s for large paintings and sculptures.”

Alonzo said she hopes patrons will approach the work with an open mind. “I very rarely try to make a distinct statement with a piece, but rather hope to start a dialogue. If patrons are intrigued enough to continue discussing the work after the exhibit, then I believe I would have accomplished what I set out to do. I would not describe it as particularly traditional, however, I have tried to express the beauty in elements of the mundane or even eerie. I hope that the work evokes a feeling of nostalgia that can resonate with a diverse group of people.”

The opening night of Imprint takes place on August 9 from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm at the LOFTT Gallery, Rosalino Street, Woodbrook, Port-of-Spain. For more information, find Opening Night: Imprint and the LOFTT Gallery on Facebook.