London august 12, 2011

8-12-11

Amongst the morning rain, I traveled the distance from Hackney central to the northwest neighborhood of Harlesden…a mixture of ethnicities coupled with the urban flare of a “hood”…. I love it…I find the mix of people, shops and eye candy intoxicating…I look at everything…. smell all and wonder…the people…they are just your average folk grooving to the beat of their drum while inviting you (not knowinginly) to partake in the party…I walk with a certain swagger that has become a dance of mine while I travel…. tortoiseshell shades on…. scarf draped deliberately around my neck and coffee cup in hand…as I punch through the hood, I feel at ease because I have been here before…I notice and remember the way…….it just came naturally……I entered the mas camp in the midst of a light drizzle shaking off the dew before I begin my hugs of familiarity with the camp workers….I greet the designer, Clary Salandy with a big hug and laugh with hugs from all the workers that remember me….the young ones have grown a few years since last I visited but they remember me and welcome me with open arms….I am at home in a sense…feeling the love and generosity of what a mas camp can be……I begin the ritual with another cup of coffee and change into a painting apron…..I am off with a brush, gold paint and a foam headdress……I relax into the moment….all the while knowing that I am just another clog in the matrix of the dynamic and every surprising creative development of the carnival art…..this years theme centers around the design of world renowned mas designer Wayne Berkely, who just recently past on June 9^th,….Clary was a dear friend and colleague of Mr. Berkeley and holds his work in high esteem. I had the opportunity to briefly meet in him while on a travel fellowship to Trinidad in 1999. Her designs for this years carnival reflect a nod to his creativity and brilliance as a designer while giving her aesthetic and work with foam and new and different relevance. She has incorporated the sense of what we have come to know as Trinidadian carnival-complete with gold beads, sequins and flair coupled with the flexibility and creative essence of her work in foam, scale and puppetry. It is a fantastic combination of old and new…familiar with the unknown and a wonderfully respectful nod to a great mass designer and friend…I am sure Mr. Berkley would approve of the designs. I am looking forward to what becomes of the whole picture, for I have only gotten a glimpse of what is to come…I am sure the results will capture the essence of Trinidad, invite conversation to continue the cultural tradition and most of all include the community to invest and become one…a so needed presence during this unnerving time in London.