FT. LAUDERDALE – Jamaica artist, Errol ‘Elgo’ Lewis pays tribute to Jamaican international reggae artist, Annette Brissett in an art exhibition now on show at the African American Art Research Library and Cultural Center (AARLCC) in Fort Lauderdale.
The exhibition which runs until September 15th, features 25 paintings done by Elgo forming a range of works inspired by Brissett’s songs, each with the corresponding lyrics posted to it.
Elgo chose Brissett’s songs as his theme because he ‘was inspired by her great talent as a composer, singer and musician’ he said.
Using a synthesis of modern and traditional art to understand the relevance of the songs throughout the exhibition, Elgo explained that he was motivated by the consistency and humility in her lyrics.
Her musical career began in 1970 when she migrated to the USA, and now resides in South Florida and Philadelphia.
Among her many compositions is the well-known recording “I Shall Sing” sung by international reggae superstar, Marcia Griffiths. Both women are expected to make a guest appearance on Saturday, September 9 at the African American Research Library where they will perform.
Elgo himself a widely traveled and widely acclaimed international artist, is currently the president of the Western Jamaica Society of Fine Arts (WJSOFA). He has exhibited works throughout the United States, the United Kingdom and Africa where several of his pieces are displayed at the Black Heritage Museum and at the Marcus Garvey Center in Accra, Ghana.
Elgo and his wife, curator Pat Lewis have over the years, been instrumental in mounting international exhibitions featuring other Jamaican artists collaborating with the overseas Jamaican Missions, the Jamaican Tourist Board and county libraries.
Elgo’s works were exhibited last year in Atlanta, Georgia, as part of Jamaica’s Independence celebrations –2005, and more recently, at the Museum of America at the OAS in Washington, D.C. He was also featured in a solo exhibition at the Rye Library in Up State New York.
On his current display, Elgo said that he was proud of the positive impact created by Jamaicans in the Diaspora and expressed further that his novel idea was to bring more dynamism to that Jamaican experience now evolving globally.
