An air of sophistication and fun filled the Ani Art Academy in Crocus Bay as evening guests attended the 2nd annual art showcase on December 27th. Art lovers examined the displays, dined on appetizers, and mingled in and around the Academy.
Ten artists, nine currently attending the academy and one former student, exhibited their work to the audience. The artwork portrayed detailed black and white charcoal drawings and colorful oil paintings. They rested on wooden easels and were lined throughout the long gallery room. An overhead light shone on each piece to better observe its details. Several of the artists stood at attention beside their work and were ready to answer all questions about their creations. All art pieces were created in Naturalism, a form of art that seeks to depict objects and people realistically without any type of distortion.
Omar Crawford, Head Instructor at Ani Art Academy, organized the event with the help of some of the artists. The holiday event which began in 2019 was planned to be held annually but was put on hold due to the covid pandemic. Mr. Carwford stated that his artists have been working diligently throughout the pandemic and eagerly wanted to get the public involved again. He said that the showcase was an opportunity to see who would be interested in joining the school.
Mr. Crawford continued by saying, “We have more work to show than we did a couple of years ago, and we have more paintings in particular. We did not have as many painters over the last couple years. We had more drawings and maybe just a couple of paintings, but now we have a whole row of paintings done by students, besides myself, students here at Ani Art.”
Raheem Webster, a past student at the academy, created a charcoal drawing of a vase of flowers with fine linen in the background. The artwork entitled “Prestige Desires”, was created in the same process as the other drawings. He explained, “We took a photo and used that photo reference to create the drawing. Once you have your reference you can do a light sketch. When you’re doing charcoal drawing it’s best to do it in layers, or else you’ll damage the paper. And then you build upon the layers. It’s easier to add value than to remove value.”
Meredith Gumbs, now a year into the academy, did a charcoal drawing inspired by a picture which her son sent her from a humanitarian trip he had attended in the Philippines. The piece is entitled “Saviour of Little Angels II.” It is of a man [her son] gently cradling a small child. She said, “When I saw the picture I fell in love with it because, as you can see, it’s full of emotion and I thought I would paint it and give it to him as a birthday gift. So I did so and he was totally amazed by it. He couldn’t believe it. He was so impressed with the work. But I decided to do a second one, as you would notice this says part 2. The reason why I’m doing it is because an art gallery in Oklahoma is going to take some of the art and they wanted one that deals with humanitarianism,” she said. “So because it was a humanitarian trip they went on I decided to do it over and send it off to Oklahoma for the gallery.”
Mr. Crawford explained that he allows his students to draw and paint whatever they like, and that he doesn’t impede on the students’ creative drive.
Later in the night Goordon Hazel provided live musical entertainment.
The Ani Art Academy is a non-profit art school with branches in The United States, Sri Lanka, Dominica, Thailand, Waichulis, and Anguilla. The Anguilla branch reopens on January 3rd. The Academy offers a 4-year course consisting of three years of drawing and a final year of painting.
Mrs. Gumbs continued by seriously saying, “You have to put in 30 hours a week. If not they will ask you to leave the school. It’s a scholarship programme. The material is free and the lunch is free. You work in an air-conditioned room all day. Besides, they expect you to honor your obligation as well.”
Ani Art Academy can be followed on Instagram at Aniartanguilla or visit their website aniartacademies.org/anguilla.
