Kavelle Anglin-Christie, Staff Reporter
Brown: I don't believe that one should be boxed in and be known for one thing, and if they are proficient in both fields, they should be respected for what they do. - CLAUDINE HOUSEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
AJ BROWN seems to have come full circle in his music career and is on to other works of art.
Alvin James Brown is known for songs such as Get Up Chant, Making Love Together and All Fall Down, among others, but is now intent on making his mark on canvas.
Brown, who specialises in portraiture, says art is something that came naturally and which he has been doing as far back as he can remember. "When I was going to Cornwall College, I always did well in art and I passed it in GCE, so I was able to use the passes to get a spot at the Cultural Training Complex (now Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts)," he said.
Right now he is "trying to bring each craft to its highest level as possible. I don't believe that one should be boxed in and be known for one thing, and if they are proficient in both fields, they should be respected for what they do."
COMBINING BOTH DISCIPLINES
Brown said he is more qualified as an artist, because he graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, with a Bachelor of Arts in 1992. He says what makes him different as an artiste is his academic training in art and his ability to combine both disciplines. "I can interpret music in art. They are both creative endeavours and I like to incorporate one into the other," he said.
He added that he gets his inspiration mainly from landscapes. "I will take pictures, houses, boats, and just about anything and paint them. With each portrait I try to make it different and focus on the carnival aspect of our culture as Caribbean people," he said.
Brown says although he has found music more lucrative, that isn't a reason to dismiss his passion for painting. "I managed to build up a lifestyle based on my life as an entertainer, but right now I am just coming into my own as an artist ... Some people choose to explore one aspect of their career and I figured that I acquired this academic (qualification), so why not use it?" he said.
MORE FOCUSED
Brown said his life as an artiste has made him more focused as an artist. "I usually paint more at nights after a performance. In the earlier days after a performance, I would just walk around or watch TV until I get tired, but then it occurred to me that I should use my time to be more productive. But learning time management came with years of experience," AJ Brown said.
He said the art community has embraced him for the most part, as some were already his acquaintances. "Most of the well-known artists are my tutors; you have people like Cecil Cooper and T.J. Stewart (who) used to go to school together, so many of them have been privy to my growth and are encouraging," he said.
So far, Brown's work has been featured in exhibitions around the island and he says the response has been positive.
