Time to paint
published: Sunday | August 24, 2003

From left, Father and Son 2000, and Viola, 2001

Sana Rose, Contributor

A COLLECTION of paintings dubbed Metamorphosis is currently on show at Bolivar Gallery. The pieces are done by New Zealand-born John A. Terry who has been living in Jamaica since 1967.

The artist at present serves as the Honorary British Consul for Western Jamaica, a post he has held since 1993 but has many years of experience in hotel and resort operations and management. His work experience spans nearly 40 years. In addition, he was appointed Justice of the Peace for St. James in 1991 and is engaged in charity work for which the Queen of England gave him a special award.

The works on show are watercolour and acrylic paintings, which date from 1997 to the present and range from representation to abstraction. Based on his choice of imagery, Terry seems to be a lover of nature ­ birds and shells especially ­ and music. The most engaging pieces of Terry's collection are the abstract and semi-abstract works such as Symphony of Colours, Red Head and Take it as Red. These very recent works illustrate more depth of expression and better use of composition and colour unlike the other paintings in the show. The series of works painted on silk with shells as the main or sole subject matter are dated from 1997 to the present but show the same kind of rendition throughout. The images are consistently flat, lacking in a strong illusion of form and the use of space is weak. They display no evidence of experimentation or investigation in the development of the images. The same is true of works such as Bloody Mary and Diva.

The theme of the exhibition, Metamorphosis, may point to Terry's artistic temperament over the years ­ in some pieces the images sits in empty space while in others the painting overflows with shapes and colours applied in swift strokes. The artist's impressive résumé, which details his managerial appointments to date show an artist who has been engrossed in entrepreneurial work that leaves little time for extended practice of his art. A circumstance that besets many artists, this time constraint infringes on the development of one's work. All good artists will say that art is very hard work and is therefore very demanding. Given the often limited and slow reaping of financial rewards involved in art, many artists engage in other professions. Oftentimes, the art suffers because there is never enough time to immerse oneself in the studio. While Terry has had and continues to have an illustrious career in the hotel industry and the diplomatic service, this exhibition shows that his art will require more of his time to develop. The energy and expressiveness of pieces such as Viola and Dream of Colour show the most promise.

The exhibition continues until the first week of September.

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