GUYANA
guyanatimesgy.com
Friday, March 21, 2014
Issue No. 005
Leslie Hinds stands by his display table on Main Street
I
t is just about the close of his work day, on an afternoon like every other, but Marvin Phillips still sits rasping the rough chunk of mahogany that will soon become his most recent piece of sculpted art. This abstract piece will join more than 20 others neatly displayed on his table which sits across from his makeshift workstation in the avenue of Main Street, Georgetown. This is his 10th year at this location. All this time, Marvin has religiously set up shop six days a week, to display his work and work on other pieces from 08:00h to 18:00h. Prior to that, Marvin spent almost 17 years just in front of Guyana Stores doing the same thing. These sculptures are his life. As he smoothes this particular piece of wood, two tourists saunter by, soaking in their surroundings of the Bank of Guyana, the Hotel Tower, Courts Guyana and, of course, Marvin’s work and the work of the other sculptors just nearby. Tourists are rare these days, and even as the woman stares at the
wooden carvings a bit too long in that fickle manner that window shoppers are all too guilty of, Marvin springs to his feet to reach his table in time, in hopes of selling at least one piece. If he does, this will be his first sale in days; maybe longer. But before he knows it, they are gone and Marvin returns to his seat, his face visibly despondent. He cannot remember when the sales began to dwindle, but what he knows for sure is that this was not the way it used to be. “Years ago, there were lots of people who would support us; big companies – private and public, Government Ministries. A long time ago, the market was there, but now, times are different,” Marvin said. With the uncertainty of sales but the natural need to survive, he now depends on other jobs into which he can invest his talent and earn from it. “We get some projects on the side sometimes; assignments for children, requests from schools, and we get some earnings from that but it is sad to know that support for what we do is so poor.” turn to page 3
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