Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

One of what is planed to be a series of art displays is now up at Bookophilia, three artists' work mounted on the walls to complement the numerous books on display.

At the official opening of the display, held at Bookophilia recently, the three artists - Chungknight, Marlon James and Neil Edwards - spoke about their work.

Chungknight gave a history of his involvement in art, noting that due to his involvement in different fields, such as sculpture and architecture, "I connect things that people think are separate".

Chungknight said that when he went to school he wanted to do "classical stuff". Shortly after he started doing sculpture in the USA he developed spinal problems and "it got to the point where I was told if I continued sculpture I ran the risk of being paralysed. I decided to go for it". On returning to Jamaica he did the 'Infusion' and 'Confusion' series. Among his work on display at Bookophilia is 'And then there was two', a digital print on watercolour.

a competitive edge

Marlon James said that he studied sculpture at the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts but did an elective in photography. At first he was "crappy", but developed due to his competitive edge. James said he was doing a series about identity, entitled 'Out of Many One', the intention being to do a study on the different people in the country.

"I want to look at the different scopes of Jamaica," James said, naming the homeless, upper class, deejay and musician among those he wants to photograph. "I want to have large images of the people, have a room filled with these people," James said.

He also dreams of utilising the empty billboards around to mount the images.

He explained the background to one of the images he had on display, a woman in a white dress in a graveyard. He said he was doing a fashion shoot in Irish Town, St Andrew, and the woman in a white dress looks like a ghost, what with the wind blowing. That work is 'Untitled'.

old-school photography

James also said that he committed to black and white photography. "I want to show you I am the old-school kind of guy, shooting black and white with an analog camera, go in a darkroom and print. It is your personal photograph, technology has not messed with it at all," he said.

Neil Edwards said "For me photography is an adventure of sorts. It has been going on for about 14 years." The starting point was in the US, where he was hooked after being introduced to black and white photography while doing finance. He quickly bought a camera at K-Mart (which he still has today), but "It is all digital now. I shoot digital. I love the digital darkroom."

He finds "beauty in the everyday life of Jamaica, even in the unpleasant".

Among the work he has on display at Bookophilia are 'Manchoneil 2006', 'Outhouse' and 'This Old House'.