Arts Directory Barbados

EWAN ATKINSON Ewan Atkinson was born in Barbados in 1975 and received a BFA from the Atlanta College of Art in 1998. He has exhibited in regional and international exhibitions of Caribbean contemporary art, including most recently The 2010 Liverpool Biennial, "Rockstone and Bootheel" at Real Art Ways in Hartford Connecticut, and "Infinite Islands" at the Brooklyn Museum in New York. Atkinson has taught in the BFA program at the Barbados Community College since 2000 and also works as a freelance illustrator and designer.

Ewan Atkinson's work deals with the development of persona and character within the social boundaries that might define or confine a community, specifically Caribbean island communities. What value systems control social roles and moral positions? Where do these notions originate and who keeps these ideals in place? Influence from educational experience, formal and informal, is of particular interest. Role-play is an important part of the work, fictional characters are the tools with which conflict between community and singularity are explored. The moments when external cultural influences and folk ‘traditions’ meet become points of departure. ewanatkinson@me.com www.ewanatkinson.com