Into the big leagues of local art
If there is one thing that shows through in the work of Bermudian artist Lindsey George, it is her overwhelming love for animals.
When you ask the 24-year-old artist how many animals she lives with, it takes some thought and calculation. “The whole family has two dogs, two cats, two parrots, three parakeets, two ponies in the back yard, three horses at the boarding stable, two roosters, one hen, six pigeons and, as of two days ago, a Starling with a wonky leg,” said Miss George.
“We also have a newt, turtles and fish. I would have two newts, but they don’t bring in the same kind anymore. I am reasonably certain that is everybody.”
About the only thing she doesn’t have in the menagerie are domestic frogs, which is probably why she paints them. She is gradually making a name for herself with her frogfly paintings — frogs with wings done on clayboard. This month her work is being featured in the latest Bermuda Showcase at the Lighthouse Tea Room at Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, alongside more established artists such as Vernon Clarke, Christopher Marson, Marlene Jantzen and Milton Hill, Sr.
The theme of this month’s showcase is ‘Art for Christmas Giving’ and will feature many pieces that will make great gifts for the art enthusiast.
The show will be on until December 15 and the tea room is open every day from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. “We are changing the show as we go along, replacing sold pieces with new work,” said showcase organiser Deirdre Furtado. “We are really pleased to be including Miss George.
“A number of our artist friends are participating and the result is a great variety of work, realistically priced.”
“There is a whole list of other artists who will be in the show,” said Miss George. “It is a bit of a surprise to be included with them, as they are very well known.”
The frogflies which are on clayboard, began as an art project while Miss George was at the Savannah College of Art & Design and Illustration where she graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
“We had this assignment to work with this clayboard stuff which I had never seen before,” said Miss George. “We had three pieces of it and we had to do three things that were related.
“I had this book of photographs of lizards and rainforest frogs. So I thought they were cute and I thought I would do them. They were just little frogs, so I gave them wings.
“They weren’t even my real college project, they were just the tester. The final project was mediocre and best forgotten, but the frogflies continue.”
The frogflies have now appeared in several art shows, and are fluttering their way into art collections around the Island.
“I don’t know if they are selling well,” she said. “This is the first time I have ever tried to sell stuff. As far as I am concerned, they are selling brilliantly well.
“I don’t know how it would compare to more established painters. It was awesome when I sold my first painting. I was kind of stunned, actually.
“I hadn’t expected anything to sell at all, and then I found out my frogflies were all gone. I thought, ‘well that’s good, I’ll paint some more’.”
Now she is looking to branch out to other subjects including architecture, landscapes and of course, animals. She admitted that while animals can make great art subjects, they can sometimes impede the flow of creativity, literally. She often has to paint with MTV playing in the background to block out all the barking, meowing, crowing, clucking and shuffling.
“If I don’t have MTV playing in the background, every dog, cat, bird that wanders by is going to distract me,” she said with a laugh. “I have far, far too many pets. They make good subjects when they are falling asleep, and not when they are trying to help. They do love to help.
“I have had them walk across paintings; I have had them walk across the pallet. Sometimes they bring in birds and leaves and drop them on my artwork. At the moment I am fighting with them over my sketch book, which is considered ‘the place’ to sit.”
In addition to her frogflies and other artwork, Miss George is currently helping local author Dale Butler to illustrate a children’s book. She also will do commissioned portraits of people’s pets.
To learn more about the Bermuda Showcase go to www.bermudashowcase.com.
