Heritage Month brings unique artworks to Castellani House

As Amerindian Heritage Month continues, art and craft is next on the forefront as the art gallery and exhibition commenced on Friday at Castellani House, situated on the corner of Vlissengen Road and Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown.
For three weeks, the general public will be able to visit the gallery and witness some of the finest artworks by talented young Guyanese artists, sculptors and craftsmen. The annual exhibit sought to pay homage this year to the famous ceramist Stephanie Correia, while highlighting the works of youths.
Speaking with Guyana Times in the midst of the event, the organiser and Lokono artist, George Simon, noted that the focus was centred on portraying the best of Amerindian talent through diversified representations of the culture and traditions.
“This is an annual exhibition to celebrate Heritage Month. It’s an exhibition of

paintings, sculptures and craft. It has become a tradition of Heritage Month celebration. We’re particularly focusing on the work of Stephanie Correia who is a stalwart in ceramics, painting and graphic designing. She passed away many years ago so we’re paying homage to her especially.”
Hailing from Surama Village in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), the works of Lorenzo John are on display as one of the new introductions. Additionally, some of the sculptures were done by Oswald Hussein and paintings by Desmond Alli. This is the first-year paintings were featured by Alli, who is mainly a sculptor. Simon stated that no ceramic creations were submitted this year to be featured but there have been improvements in the craft section. In this area, a variety of handmade hammocks, tibisiri ornaments, amethyst jewellery and customised shirts were on display. Meanwhile, the walls of the nineteenth century building were revived with dozens of kaleidoscopic abstract paintings essentially depicting the wilderness of the forests and the practices that are evident in the Amerindian culture. Some of Guyana’s premium timbers were also used to craft a selection of sculptures with high quality finishes.
“The exhibition is not terribly complex. There is a number of sculptures by Oswald Hussein and for the first time, we have paintings by Desmond Alli, who is a sculptor and a painter. Sadly, we don’t have any ceramics and for some reason, we didn’t have anyone to exhibit ceramics here. That is missing but the craft aspect of it is gradually developing. And that is good for the exhibition itself.”
The exhibition is ongoing every day until September 29. Those who are interested

in the items or would like to visit the exhibition can do so at Castellani House.
Other activities scheduled for the coming weeks include the Indigenous Heritage Day at Shulinab Village in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), a hinterland school education tour, educational lectures, Indigenous games and the annual heritage fundraiser dinner.