12162016 weekend

The Tribune

Friday, December 16, 2016

art books shopping film literary lives podcasts animals food

Weekend

red dress belles Pages 8&9

Ladies in red Designs for a good cause Society, pages 14&15

02 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

section

The Tribune | Weekend | 03

Friday, December 16, 2016

Inside Weekend

My perfect Bahamian weekend Pastor Heath Fowler Bahamian author

Interview

“I’m an ice-tea kinda guy”

4-5 Renee Caesar talks about her passion and encouragement for all things artistic in the Bahamas

Shopping 6 Stuck for Christmas present ideas?

Weekend’s handy guide to gift shopping Food 7 Black Angus is a trendy New York Citystyle eaterie Society 8-9 The belles of the Red Dress Soiree ball

Art 10-11 Traditional screen printing thrives at Bahama Hand Prints and nature v nurture at an exhibition Fashion 12-16 The 12 leading ladies on the Red Dress Soiree runway, local designers’ showcases and the hits, splits and fails on the Holloywood red carpet

Film 17 Rogue One is one of the best Star Wars movies ever Podcasts 18 Fun and festive listening and embarrassing moments revealed

Books 19 Fay Knowles’ memoir of a faraway place has taken a long journey to publication

Things 2 Do this weekend Friday

for the holiday season.

Christmas Brew 2016 Ho Ho launch Time: 6pm Venue: Pirate Republic, Woodes Rogers Wharf Pirate Republic Brewing Co hosts its Christmas Brew launch, promising a special craft beer for the holiday season. The first 25 people to taste the “magical” brew will receive a complimentary Christmas present from the brewery.

A Junkanoo Rush will kick off the festivities followed by live music.

Junior Junkanoo Parade Time: 3pm Venue: Arawak Cay Eighteen schools particpate in the 29th annual Junior Junkanoo Parade under the theme “Matthew Couldn’t Stop This Rush”. Pre-school, primary, junior high and senior high children take part including defending champions One on One Pre-school, Tarpum Bay Primary and Preston Albury High School.

Tickets $5.38 general admission, $10.75 for VIP. There will be live entertainment, bouncey castles, face painting and more.

Forgotten Facts 25

Saturday

Literary Lives

The novelty and glamour of early flying

Animals 27 A red letter day for an animal advocate

Gardening 28 Jack Hardy on weird and wonderful tomatoes

Q: Weekend away: where would you go?

So many places I would want to see. But if I must narrow it down to one I would have to say Switzerland.

My parents lived there for a year and, according to them, it was where I was conceived.

When my mother was seven months pregnant, she and my father moved back to the Bahamas.

So, apart from feasting on a gamut of chocolate truffles, I would like to see the place where the first signs of my life came into existence.

Q: Wine, Kalik, rum or cocktail?

Unless it’s unfermented wine, I would have to say none. Alcohol has never been part of my repertoire of desired beverages. I’m an ice-tea kinda guy.

22-25 Why Sir Orville Turnquest’s look at the Duke of Windsor is a must-read for all Bahamians

A night under the stars at Sapodilla

Q: What could you not do without?

I can do without many things, but I certainly can’t do without the Lord. In Him I live, move and have my being.

Q: Saturday breakfast or Sunday lunch?

Saturday breakfast, which is a relaxing opportunity to spend time with the wife and kids. It’s also one of the few times my wife can get me to cook without her asking me to do it.

Movie Night Under the Stars Time: 6.30 to 9.30pm Venue: Harbour Front Lounge, East Bay Street The Rotaract Club of Nassau Sunset will host the holiday classic “This Christmas”. Sunset Cinema is a fundraising initiative of the Rotaract Club of Nassau Sunset.

Charity 20

Q: Beach or sofa?

Sofa. I’m a homebody, who enjoys the simple comforts of being at home.

Island Luck Cares Foundation Kids Carnival Time: noon to 5pm Venue: The Carnival Grounds The IL Cares Foundation hosts up to 3,000 children to free rides, eats, drinks, gifts with Santa and lots of fun

Festival of Lights Christmas Boat Parade Time: 6.30pm Venue: Arawak Bay The lighted flotilla casts off and will make its way under the Nassau bridges to Montagu and then circle back to its start location, stopping both ways at Pier 14, giving the crowd a close-up of the boats as they turn in the channel. Fireworks at 7pm.

Or watch with Yellow Bird Party Boats - $35 for adults, $25 for children including boxed Christmas dinner.

Or view from the British Colonial Hilton - Adults $10, Children $5 (10 and under).

Jingle Bell Jazz Time: 7pm to midnight Venue: Smugglers, Marlborough Square, downtown Internationally renowned saxophonist Jeanette Harris and the Melody Sound Band provide the music for an evening of jazz and cholcolate vibes.

Dinner tickets $150, VIP $50 (drink and food included), general admission $25 (one drink included).

Sunday Christmas, Carols, Coffee Time: 6.30pm Venue: Epic Church Bahamas, Summerwinds Plaza eNue presents its fifth Christmas, Carols, Coffee event at which attendees will have a time to worship and celebrate the reason for the season.

Faith Village Time: 7.30pm Venue: Calvary Deliverance Church The Faith Village benefit concert with Bishop Washington Williams, formerly of the Cooling Waters, Pastor Simeon Outten and the Freedom Band, Bishop Lawrence Rolle, Christian Massive, Landlord and many more.

04 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

interview The woman behind Artful Bahamas can boast film production, singing and songwriting on her burgeoning resume. Cara Hunt hears from a passionate campaigner for raising artistic awareness in the country

Renee Caesar

R

enee Caesar may just be a one woman band to promote all things artistic in the Bahamas.

Not only does she dabble in a myriad things as a singer and songwriter who also works in film production but she has also initiated a number of programmes designed to promote the arts and foster closer ties within the artistic community.

“I have always been into theatre and arts and artistic expression,” she told Tribune Weekend. “I guess I began with the Da’ Spot (improve group), I never really left it, but I have not done anything with them in a while.”

What she has been doing is freelancing on a number of impressive film projects, working in lighting and production. Her resume can now boast that she has worked on the Bahamian films ‘Cargo’, ‘Children of God’ and ‘Rain’ as well as major Hollywood productions such as ‘Duplicity’, ‘The Other Woman’ and a number of television shows and commercials.

It is a career path she stumbled into.

“I had a friend who knew people were working on a project and something had gone wrong or they needed someone and so they recommended me because of my theatre background.

The industry really goes by word of mouth and it can be hard to get into.

But once you are in, then you are in.”

Renee, 33, says that she loves the professionalism of being on set.

“I love a good production. Everyone on the set is important, from the person who picks up the garbage upward. Because if he doesn’t do it when it needs to be done, and you have to come on set when it’s time to shoot and it has to be done then you can lose

an hour.

“Everyone has to come together and get the work done. You can’t get upset because someone yelled at you; you do your job and then, at the end of the day, you all go out drinking because nothing is personal. I love it and hope to direct someday because I like the idea of putting stories together,” Renee said.

Growing up, Renee and her mother moved around a lot and that was how she came to realise just how many artisans lived and worked in isolation from each other.

“My mom was a teacher, so I switched schools when she got transferred. I have the school history of a delinquent. High school was mostly on the Family Islands - Acklins and Eleuthera.

“As I moved from circle to circle that’s how I found out there’s a lot of us running around and a lot of people don’t know other people who do what

“As I moved from circle to circle that’s how I found out there’s a lot of us running around and a lot of people don’t know other people who do what they do.”

Friday, December 16, 2016

they do. I think that painters had a head start - they sort of know who they were.”

The idea she came up with was as simple as it was brilliant and effective.

‘Artful Bahamas’ is a project designed to showcase artists whatever their speciality may be.

“The goal is to unite, empower and educate people about the arts and the artists and it is now gaining traction,” she said.

“Artful Bahamas started one day when I just was on my computer and I created a filter and used it over my picture. From there I messaged all the artists I knew and gave them the filter and about 60 per cent of them used it as their profile picture.

“Basically Artful Bahamas keeps an eye out on what is going on in the community and who the artists are and we share and publise the information for free on social media under the hash-tag #artfulbahamas. People are now asking me to show up at events and other artists now know that they are not alone.” #unboxedbahamas is another venture similar to the #artfulbahamas. She explained that it literally means artistic expressions that are “out of the box or maybe they were never in the box”.It means that there are really no limitations on what they are doing.

Another promotional/networking event she has spearheaded is the Street Show, which is held on Monday evenings in downtown Nassau.

“It provides artists with an opportunity to come out and vibe with people behind the Straw Market. We incorporate all types of artists and they can hang out and get creative.

“Basically the way it started was that my friends and I were planning to go to one of the last of the open mics venues and the show got postponed.

I was like ‘well we are dressed and ready to go so we need to go somewhere’. So we ended up just hanging out.

“I made a flyer inviting people to come out and, pretty much every week now, we have new people come out So even if attendance is low, we do it anyway. I just want the venue to exist so that people know it is there as an option. It is just a great way for people to release their creative energy. Most of the time people don’t even drink.”

Renee said she hopes her efforts and those of all the people who work with her - will help keep the momentum alive and continue to provide opportunities for exposure.

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She has many ambitions. “Theatre is actually the least of my goals, although I do intend to both perform in and write a Broadway musical soon. My goals are to become a first assistant director in the film world and to write and direct.

“I am also currently writing a novel and working on an EP which will be made up of songs I have written performed and produced by a variety of local talent. Words are my passion, music is my life, art is my inspiration and the stage is my home - that’s me in a nutshell.”

Renee is a linguist, speaking Spanish and learning several other languages.

She also plays pool and says “I want to play on ESPN one day”.

Her latest project is called “Words Out Workshops” and is geared towards providing quality and affordable learning opportunities for the artistic and unconventional segment of the country.

The first workshop takes place on Sunday and will teach and hone songwriting skills.

“I am a singer and I can write songs and I can mess around with instruments, although it’s not my passion.

A lot of people have approached me about song writing so its something that people can benefit from. I also highly recommend people take voice lessons even if they think they don’t need to learn how to sing, because at the very least it teaches you how to protect your voice,” she added.

“The idea for the project is that all the members of the community who wish they knew how to do a certain thing can have access to what we hope can always be free workshops.

The songwriting workshop will be held at the Track Road Theatre play box on Sunday at 2pm.

06 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

christmas shopping

A gift buyer’s guide

I

t’s the most wonderful time of the year and the time to check your list to see who’s naughty and who’s nice.

And as always, Tribune Weekend is here to help ease your shopping stress by giving selections to help you find the perfect gift for the special people in your life.

The first rule of Christmas is to stick within budget - no, you shouldn’t be a Scrooge but at the same time it’s not necessary to spend a fortune to spread a little holiday cheer.

If you are giving gifts to casual acquaintances such as your co-workers or boss, or maybe your child’s teacher, you want to give a gift that still remains on the professional side without being too personal (unless you socialise outside work). Perfect gifts are certificates to Starbucks - if you know they can’t live without that cup of Joe in the morning - or perhaps a bottle of their favourite wine or cider. Ladies will always appreciate scented lotion for their desks as well.

With the new ‘Star Wars’ film out and a new ‘SpiderMan’ soon to be re-

Wondering what presents to get for kids, co-workers and spouses? Cara Hunt offers some handy hints

leased, super hero paraphernalia is always a great idea for fans of the genre.

Sports enthusiasts will enjoy team gear whether it be a hat, t-shirt or travel mug.

If you know someone has a particular hobby, buy into that interest. For example I have a friend who bakes so she will be getting a special layer cake pan; my mom, who is an avid gardener, will be getting some garden signs for her backyard (oops, hope she doesn’t read this). Know someone who enjoys going to the movies?

Free passes are perfect and, if budget allows, throw in a voucher for free popcorn or a hotdog.

If Hurricane Matthew taught us anything it’s the value of being prepared. Gifts that allow you to stay connected are a great idea. For example, my dad is getting a super tecchie special battery power bank and military flash light.

Husbands, Men - a new vacuum here’s a hint

cleaner is a present for your house, not your spouse.

that will make your Christmas go much easier - anything for the kitchen or used for cleaning purposes is a gift for your house and not your spouse.

Unless she asks specifically, pots, pans, a new vacuum or a blender are not a good idea.

And even if she asks, throw in something that sparkles - ie a necklace, bracelet or earrings. If you don’t want to go the jewellery route, acceptable throw-ins include spa gift certificates, travel vouchers or anything that says leather - ie shoes or handbags.

Wives, your husbands probably only want you not to nag but add to that something tecchie, gamey or geeky - yes, they really do want play station games (my hubby will be getting FIFA 2017) or anything that can fit into their personal man cave.

Friends and family will enjoy your special baked goods if you are a great baker, because as we all know holiday calories don’t count - just package them festively and they are good to go.

And finally, but most importantly, Christmas is a time for kids and if anyone should be spoiled and showered with gifts it’s the little darlings - as long as they’ve been good of course.

These are children of the 21st century and its all about tablets and, for some lucky ones, iPhones - basically anything portable

Worrying about what gifts to give at Christmas can be stressful and chargeable.

Girls will love make-up, cute dresses and tutu skirts and shoes. Younger girls will love ‘Baby Alive’, and when it comes to ‘Frozen’ little girls will not let go of (bad pun I know) Princess Sophie and the other Disney princesses and Dora the Explorer and Finding Dory.

Boys, as I am reliably informed by my seven-year-old son, are into Hot Wheels, lego,

trains and remote-controlled cars and planes, games including the re-emergence of the Rubik’s Cube and puzzles, and building kits such as science experiment or domino and marble run sets.

Hatchimals, an interactive toy that hatches from a plastic egg is probably the season’s “it” toy.

Happy shopping.

• cbrennen@tribunemedia.net

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Friday, December 16, 2016

food

A taste of trendy New York

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter acadet@tribunemedia.net

W

Chef Juan and Chef Carlos contemporary and stylish, as they are appealing to an eclectic clientele. From the lighting and seating arrangement to the staff and food choices, she believes the experience is worth it.

“At the Melia itself we have a very contemporary and chic vibe going on and the Black Angus is like that older brother that still can hang, to put it in context. It is a place for couples focused on intimacy and romance. In the restaurant there are bevelled mirrors and bronze fixtures and just a little bit of richness. People appreciate that because they don’t know what they are going to get when they walk through the doors,” she said.

Black Angus appetiser choices include Choripan, Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail, Santa Fe Provoleta, Emapanadas, Black Angus Tuna Tartar, salads and soups. Side dishes include Lobster Mac ‘n Cheese, Jalapeño Onion Rings, Roasted Garlic Mash Potatoes, Grilled Vegetables and Mushrooms.

From The Grill offerings are New York Steak, Beef Tenderloin, Cowboy Steak, Tomahawk, Patagonia Beef Short Ribs, Catch of the Day and more. The side sauce options are Argentinean Chimichurri, Roasted Bell Pepper Rosemary Sauce, Mustard Aioli and Garlic Confit, Thyme Lemon Butter and more. Among the sweets are Creme Brulee, Double Chocolate Cake and Lemon Pie. Chefs Carlos Caballero and Juan Cerna at Black Angus sat down

with Tribune Weekend to share a little about themselves and working at Melia restaurants all over the world.

“I finished my schooling in 2006 and right away I went to work in the United States for a year and a half,” Chef Carlos said. “I then moved to Canada to work for six months and then went back to Mexico to work for Melia for three years. After that I moved to Dubai to be a sous chef at a Melia restaurant. I later moved to the Bahamas and actually started working at the Cilantro restaurant on the menus, and now we are also trying to launch the Black Angus more because it is one of our signature restaurants at the hotel and that’s the objective.”

He said there is no comparison to working at the Melia in Nassau as opposed to working in Dubai because they are two different cultures. “In Dubai there is a desert so there is nothing you can play with and right now in Nassau you can get everything fresh and go straight to the source to get the ingredients that you need for your recipes and sauces. Bahamians love the restaurant and most of the people that come to have dinner are mostly locals,” he said.

Chef Juan’s training at the Melia hotel brand goes as far back to when he was 18, employed as a sous chef in Mexico. With a combination of all the talents, he believes they are doing a great job in making the Black Angus what it is today.

Photos/Shawn Hanna

hat used to be an area for meeting spaces and a gymnasium on the fourth floor at the Melia Nassau Beach Resort is now where three of the hotel’s most fancy restaurants - Cilantro, Nikkei and the trendiest of them all, the Black Angus - can be found.

Offering up to 60-ounce steaks, wine pairings, desserts, a new modern look and ambiance and more to add to a diner’s evening, the restaurant has experienced many changes in relocating from the Wyndham Resort and being rebranded at the Melia.

“We focus on the fact that Black Angus is different because it is not a new concept,” said Latoya Moxey, Senior Leisure Sales Manager at Melia Nassau Resort. “It is a staple that has been on this island for well over 25 years; it was the name of the steakhouse in the Crystal Palace. The service that people always bragged about was something that stood out with ownership when we took over. We figured since our main focus has always been the international customer, we wanted to do something separate for our local market.”

With restaurants like Dune at One&Only Ocean Club, Sapodilla on West Bay Street, Bahamian Club and Cafe Martinique at Atlantis and more, Ms Moxey said they wanted to add to the list of fine dining establishments and do something on similar level to create a special experience.

“This whole fourth floor concept was nothing that you see right now. We basically gutted the entire fourth floor and created this brand new experience. It kinda takes you out of the atmosphere of being on an island. It has a metropolitan feel to it and that is what I like about it, makes you feel like you are in New York,” said Ms Moxey.

She describes the decor as very

08 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

society

Red Dress Soiree belles of the ball

T

here may have only been 12 ladies selected to participate in this year’s Red Dress Soiree, but as our belles this week show, all of the ladies attending the charity event at Atlantis, Paradise Island, on Saturday were runway ready.

The event, which raises charity for the Bahamas Aids Foundation, saw our belles in a dazzling array of holiday-inspired evening gowns.

Jewelled toned dresses with crystal appliqués and sheer neck-

lines were a big trend as were sexy splits, lace and bold prints. Many of the attendees chose to honour the theme of the night by wearing red, including Miss Universe Bahamas Cherell Williamson who dazzled in a red lace gown.

While some ladies wore the ever elegant black, they chose to jazz it up with gold or silver accents.

All in all, it was an evening of fabulous fashion raising money for a great cause.

• See pages14 and 15 for the leading ladies on the catwalk

Tyrina Neely

Charlene Johnson

Dawn Ferguson

Bianca Sawyer

Lisa Brown

FrancineThompson

The Tribune | Weekend | 09

Friday, December 16, 2016

Photos/Shawn Hanna

Geraldine Juliem

Nycara Poitier Dekel Nesbitt

Sharon Pratt

Alanis Ingraham

10 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

art Photos/shawn hanna

Joie Lamare serves customers at Bahamas Hand Prints’ Holiday Sip n’ Shop.

Prints stand the test of time

By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Writer acadet@tribunemedia.net

W

hile the team at Bahama Hand Prints have been celebrating the company’s 50th anniversary throughout this year, the owners were still excited to host a Holiday Sip ‘n Shop on Saturday when they invited locals to join them to continue the festivities.

Patrons enjoyed mimosas and refreshments while browsing the store’s gift ideas for the holiday season, from ladies, men and children’s clothing to napkins, placemats, dish towels, pillow covers, bags and accessories collections.

Bahama Hand Prints was established in 1966 by artists Helen Astarita and Berta Sands and “is recognised to this day for its hand printed fabric, dazzling colours and brilliant designs that capture the beauty and culture of the Bahama islands” according to its Facebook site.

Today the business, now located on Ernest Street, is managed by partners Linda Brown and Joie Lamare.

“We are continuing the tradition of screen printing that they started 50 years ago,” Joie told Tribune Weekend.

“We are still operating with the original printing tables and we still print many of their beautiful designs that they created back then. Linda and I have owned the company for 15 plus years now.”

She was delighted to display their designs at the Holiday Sip ‘n Shop, the majority of which were created on site.

“We produce everything from the start of printing all the fabric to the making of all the garments and household products. Everything but our straw work and bags are produced on sight,” said Joie.

The businesswoman is amazed that they were able to keep such an institution going for so long and privileged to have something like this exist in the Bahamas today. She believes Bahama Hand Prints is really as authentically Bahamian as you will find as it relates to producing fabric in an artisanal way.

The factory includes a dark room where new designs can be transferred onto screens and made ready to print onto fabric. Using the traditional hand screen printing technique, plain fabric is transformed by Dylan Rapillard into richly coloured ‘artwork’ which is then heat-treated in a special dryer to make it colourfast. As well as the newly introduced acrylic outdoor fabric that is 100 per cent acrylic, the company prints on natural fibres such as cotton, linen and cotton-linen blends and all of the inks are water-based and environmentally friendly.

Bahama Hand Print also sells custom print to customers specifications for home or office décor, including fabric for draperies, bedding, cushions, throw pillows and furniture upholstery.

“We have been celebrating since the beginning of the year with different promotions. We were fortunate to be put out on display at the airport and we have ran various campaigns with this being the final hooray, our way of thanking all of our wonderful customers that have supported us throughout these 15 years that we have been operating the busi-

ness. We have had many memorable feedbacks but, honestly, I think the most positive thing is how grateful everyone is to be able to buy such beautiful product that is actually made right here.

“Like every country when you travel to that place you look for something that you can identify with and we have definitely become a destination for many tourists and also for our local based clientele that looks to take a beautiful piece of the Bahamas when they are offering gifts,” said Joie.

The business has grown significantly during the last few years, expanding its range of products and wholesaling to local high-end retailers such as Andeana Designs, Windermere Spa (Lyford Cay), Goodfellow Farms, The Linen Shop, The Beauty Spot, Blue Rooster (Harbour Island) and Rose Manor (Governor’s Harbour).

Joie’s advice to young entrepreneurs is to always persevere and take baby steps in order to one day take a giant leap. “I truly didn’t know what we were stepping into, but no regrets, it has been an amazing journey and we just want to keep it going,” she said.

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Friday, December 16, 2016

art

Appreciating our surroundings

By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Writer acadet@tribunemedia.net

G

iven the traditional definition of the word ‘artist’, H Justin Lockhart considers himself fairly new to the scene. However, the young Bahamian creative has been referring to himself as an artist for his entire life.

To him, art is any expression that has the power to influence the emotions, and by extension, the lives of an audience – a concept that he moulds and plays every moment of every day.

Since childhood, he found himself dabbling in some form of art whether it be drawing, playing the piano or photography. However, he never really devoted a consistent amount of time and energy to any of them. He was inspired about two years ago, when his cousin Deron encouraged him to get back into photography.

Yesterday Justin hosted an art exhibit entitled “Human Nature vs Human Nurture” at the Passion Tea Company at Plantation Hill in collaboration with another Bahamian artist, Rosemarie Laing. There were 15 photographic pieces on display, the majority being 11in x17in, all featuring Bahamian landscape and/or architecture concepts.

“I’m obsessed with architecture and landscapes, which are the main focus of my photography for this exhibition,” he told Tribune Weekend. “Furthermore, I recently went to a discussion that one of my oldest friends, Candice Knowles, had at the National Art Gallery where she spoke about traditional Bahamian architecture and how this influences not only our culture but our personal identity, which blew my mind. Especially because I’ve spent, and continue to spend, so much time looking at, drawing and/ or taking pictures of buildings and find our buildings particularly beautiful. I never thought of how architecture and landscapes affect us on such an intimate level.”

For Rosemarie, when offered the invitation to showcase alongside Justin she was elated to find out that he thought her work relates to the concept of human nature. To her, human nature vs human nurture is about how the environment impacts people as human beings.

“Our personalities, behaviours, attitudes toward things in general, as well as our appreciation for life itself, are all a part of what makes us who we are with nature. The way we think, feel and act towards each other and our environment allows us to appreciate or unnappreciate what exists. The pieces I display relates to how I perceive my environment. Some of them represent my appreciation for the things in nature, and how we as a people ought to unify ourselves,” she said.

Her art works on display are acrylic paintings on canvas and they range in size. A few are mixed media pieces, in which broken glass and shells are incorporated. Going into detail, Rosemarie said one of the mixed media pieces depicts a group of individuals each represented as a member of their society in a composed but rather vociferous manner. This particular piece relates to people being united.

“The message I want viewers to understand and to take with them is to pass on their knowledge of how appreciative we ought to be about nature.

We cannot nurture anything unless we value it. We have helped to create and shape the nature that presently exists.

But this does not mean that it will remain static. Valuing what we are a part of shows the upcoming generation that despite our differences in nationality, creed, sexual orientation, or race we are all a part of the nature that we nurture,” said Rosemarie.

It is her hope that viewers question her work and form their own opinions - right or wrong, positive or negative because everyone sees and interprets differently. Like Rosemarie, the message Justin wants people to grasp when viewing his pieces is to think about the ways their actions have affected the

Three works from H Justin Lockhart

Three works from Rosemarie Laing physical landscapes around them.

In the new year, Justin is looking forward to working on a project to use clothing as a means to remove the stigma toward drug addiction in the

Bahamas, while Rosemarie hopes to to expand her work even more artistically by showcasing current phenomenons and what she perceives for the future in a more contemporary form.

12 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

fashion

Sweet pickings among the plums Photos/shawn hanna

By JEFFARAH GIBSON Tribune Features Writer jgibson@tribunemedia.net

A

former educator who has now turned her attention to jewellery and accessory making had an opportunity to showcase some of her most exquisite creations during the “Sparkling Sugar Plums” exhibition at Doongalik Studios & Art Gallery last Sunday.

Celeste Williams, whose line is called Tabitha Jacynth Designs, specialises in handcrafted items made with indigenous materials, a trademark of her work for years. Materials that are often utilised in the creation of necklaces, hand pieces and earrings include shells, sea glass, crystals and pearls.

What is special about the “Sparkling Sugar Plums” collection is that while pieces may be strikingly similar, no two are the same.

“I try not to do more than 12 pieces of any given colour.

The pieces may be similar but they are never identical and I think that is what makes the line unique,” she said.

Also on display during the event were hand-dyed fabrics such as neck-ties, scarves and silk pieces.

“This particular showcase has a lot of glass pieces. My original concept was fire and ice, hot and cold, because that is really what we are. We go through summer which is hot and winter which is cold - period. Fire is depicted in the red, orange and yellows that I use and the blues lend to the cool down in the winter. Sometimes I pick a particular theme and I try to create pieces around that theme. I had a lot of sparkle and glass in some of the accessories.

And when combined with the red and orange balls, they looked like sparkling sugar plums, hence the title of the show,” she said.

Sparkling Sugar Plums Handcrafted Jewellery Showcase at Doongalik Studios.

Celeste Williams with some of her specialised hand-crafted jewellery at Doongalik Studios on Sunday.

As there is demand for items made with indigenous products, Celeste said the jewellery making and handcraft community is moving in that direction. “We are using a lot of indigenous materials in our work,” she told Tribune Weekend.

“Sometimes I have to refine the indigenous products and that process causes it to lose its authenticity. Shells are nice but I usually have to do a lot of sanding and processing with them.

Sometimes I even have to embellish them. Glass collected from the sea also has to be processed properly. Despite that, the pieces become easily marketed internationally,” she said.

Jewellery making has become a labour of love and a form of therapy for Celeste after she suffered a stroke in 2008.

“It is most definitely therapeutic for me because it takes me into a world. The world of creativity is always therapeutic because it gives an opportunity to immerse yourself in yourself.

It gave me an outlet. I didn’t have to worry about deadlines, meeting a quota or anything like that. I work at my own pace and it is relaxing. But at the end of it all what I enjoy most is that the work speaks to me,” she said.

Throughout her tenure as an educator with the Anglican Diocese, Celeste taught art at St John’s College and St Anne’s School. It was then that she developed a love for jewellery making.

“By teaching art and craft for the BJC syllabus it kind of awakened my sense to the skills.

I did a lot of courses on the side to keep myself of abreast of that.

Then I found that the jewellery segment of the curriculum interested me because it called for the use of indigenous materials and that was something that I love,” she said.

• For more information visit Tabitha Jacynth Designs on Facebook.

The Tribune | Weekend | 13

Friday, December 16, 2016

fashion

Heartfelt threads

By JEFFARAH GIBSON Tribune Features Writer jgibson@tribunemedia.net

B

ahamian designer Delano Marc has already set his sights on blazing a trail in the new year with the launch of his Spring/Summer 2017 collection.

During a unique showcase called ‘The Next Big Thing’, the emerging designer presented a captivating women’s and menswear collection. The ‘Love Letters and Poems’ collection featured dresses, tops, pants and prints in white, red purple and blue.

Delano, a fashion design student at the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI), told Tribune Weekend that the collection - shown al fresco at the Melia Nassau Beach Resort - featured 14 pieces that were “original”.

“This collection featured original pieces that you cannot find in stores,” he said. “My collection was based on love; love towards the people that support me and push me to do better.

I love this collection almost as much as I love the people I made it for. These love letters and poems are in the form of clothing sewn with words from the deepest part of my heart and written with ink whose core ingredients are my sweat, blood and tears,” he said.

One observer remarked that Delano created “delightful chaos”. “Frenzied styling dominated the evening as petite to full-figured models dominated the runway with cool confidence - many of them rocking natural hair with highlights.

Using tie dye in blue, red, pink, purple and blue with crisp white, the splashes of vibrant shades and creativity enhanced the patterns. However, one of Marc’s ensembles featured a long, gothic dress, making a

statement of power and poise, drawing applause from the audience,” they said.

“From turbans to formfitting and ruffled see-though dresses with plunging backs, jackets, off-the-shoulder tops, swimwear and pants, the millennial must be lauded for his effort.”

Under the management of The Starving Artist Community (SAC) and Vintage 91 photography, ‘The Next Big Thing’ is also a platform for aspiring models to showcase their skills while also getting a feel of what it is like to work with professional designers. Winning the competition to become the face of Vintage 91 was Galy Joseph.

As an emerging designer, Delano said he believes there is so much more in store for him.

“My dreams and aspirations stem from the drive to make a difference in my environment.

My primary goal in life is inspiration, to inspire others and to be inspired by others. Growing up in the Bahamas I have always been creative and decided to embrace my creativity by attending BTVI and studying fashion,” he said.

While studying fashion, Delano had the opportunity to meet many creative people who have inspired his unique style.

“My goal is to become a textile designer and create prints on fabric and someday sell clothing and fabric worldwide,” he said.

Last year, a ball gown designed by Delano captured second place in the Miss Bahamas Top Model competition. His piece was inspired by international recording artist Rihanna’s song, ‘Towards the Sun’ and said that music becomes a major source of inspiration for him.

The fitted dress was layered with yellow fabric, accessorised with a graphic cape which featured an airbrushed tree, covered with a cluster of leaves.

Miss Universe Grand Bahama, Darronique Young, modelled the gown during the competition.

Photos/shawn hanna

Hungry to help talent A relatively new conglomerate of artists is hinging on the belief that there is strength in differences as it moves forward with its goal of empowering one another through the creative arts.

The group of creatives have formed the “Starving Artist Community” (SAC) where those who have unique talents can work together on a common goal - projects, community-centred initiatives and events.

SAC is an organisation whose primary goal is to empower talented individuals. It prides itself in utilising the power of teamwork to host events to encourage exposure, raise funds and assets for non-profit organisations and advance the local community. It was founded by emerging designer Delano Marc, pictured above, last year with the sole of purpose of eliminating weaknesses in the creative arts community through unity.

SAC’s primary members are in the field of fashion, photography and fitness. They hope to attract others in creative field. “We cater to individuals who are in the field of art, fashion, music and education,” Delano told Tribune Weekend.

SAC hosts a number of events, including fashion shows, spoken word nights, rap battles, hair shows and more. Most recently it presented ‘The Next Big Thing’, a fashion and model showcase event at the Melia Nassau Beach Resort over the weekend.

“It is SAC’s belief that networking is key to removing many barriers. The creative community can benefit from SAC’s networking quality. All artists, and talented individuals are encouraged be a part of the community,” he said.

Delano said much can be expected from SAC, which expects to host several shows and fashion runway training next summer.

JEFFARAH GIBSON

16 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

film

With Cara Hunt and Farah Gibson

HIT

HIT

FAIL

SPLIT

FAIL

Niecy Nash

Emma Stone

Aja Naomi King

Issa Rae

Eva Longoria

Cara says: “Niecy has been bringing it to the red carpet lately and I have to say that this animal print dress is another hit. I love that the style of the dress is not fussy, because that bold print says it all.”

Farah says: “Leopard is just on of those classic prints that will never go out of style. And Niecy killed this. The dress hugs her body in all the right places, and the bob hairstyle adds that extra edge.”

Cara says: “The colour on her is gorgeous. It’s a fun dress and I love the jewel detailing on the bodice and the pop of colour with the red clutch.

Everything is a yes with me except those shoes, they are a straight no.

Farah says: “What more can I say. Emma plays it safe with a cute and classy ensemble. It definitely works.”

Cara says: “Lovely colour and horrid shoes. Showing your chest does not automatically make your dress less boring.

This is just an uninspiring blue dress. Didn’t see the back - but hopefully the party is in the back Farah says: “Aja played it safe with this royal blue body con dress. I only wish she had stepped her shoe game up a little bit. I am bit weary of seeing nude and royal blue colour combo.”

Cara says: “I liked it. It’s fun and funky and a little different. Plus her hair is super cute. And finally an ankle strap shoe that works.”

Farah says: “Issa is so beautiful but this look dress is a complete disaster.

The turtle neck looks a bit uncomfortable, the cold shoulders style is a bit overdone and the dress has no shape at all.”

Cara says: “This is a definitely a woman at lunch kind of dress. It reminds of maybe Mother’s Day service at church, when the plan is to go the buffet afterwards so you wear your cute little floral dress. It’s cavity sweet.”

Farah says: “I really hope Eva had just come from church or was on her way there after the Hollywood Reporter breakfast. This dress reminds me all too much of Easter and with all the different styles and fashion at her disposal I felt she could have made a better pick than this floral skater dress ensemble.”

ap photos

The Weekend Fashion Report Hollywood Reporter 25th Annual Woman in Entertainment Breakfast

The Tribune | Weekend |17

Friday, December 16, 2016

film Photo: Lucasfilm Ltd

‘Rogue One’ is a bold and stirring adventure film that will have both fans and casual observers spellbound. It is easily the most exciting blockbuster in recent memory this side of ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ and that includes ‘The Force Awakens’, which now looks lazy and bloated with sentimentality and fan service in comparison to the subversive ingenuity of ‘Rogue One’.

How refreshing it is to have a truly contained film that doesn’t have any objective beyond the story at hand.

There is nothing to advance, nothing to tease, no “maybe we’ll find answers in the next movie in two years” here.

It is just allowed to be what it is - an intense and visually engrossing pow-

derkeg of a film.

It’s a simple idea, really: who are the rebels who stole the plans for the Death Star? That pivotal action kicked off the original ‘Star Wars’ and it’s pretty inherently dramatic.

Loosely, ‘Rogue One’ is rooted around the plight of Jyn Erso, whose father Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen) is a scientist who once worked for the Empire. He gets drawn back in by the ambitious Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn) to help finish the Death Star, leaving Jyn, played by Beau and Dolly Gadsdon as a young girl, and Felicity Jones as an adult, to survive on her own. Jyn is sort of raised by a rebel extremist in Saw Gerrera (an over-the-

top Forest Whitaker), but much of this is left both unseen and unexplained.

What we know is she is a child of war, and an almost apathetic one at that, until she is rescued from imprisonment by a group of rebels hoping her familial connections might help with their efforts against the Empire.

There, she’s put together with a deadpan droid K-2S0 (Alan Tudyk) and a spy, Cassian (Diego Luna), who is given a secret mission within the mission. Eventually they meet the blind Jedi Chirrut (Donnie Yen), his decidedly more practical companion Baze Malbus (Wen Jiang) and the conflicted pilot (Riz Ahmed), forming a motley crew of unlikely heroes.

The real feat of ‘Rogue One’ is that Edwards and screenwriters Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy create a world with actual stakes, making the audience feel for and worry about characters we have just met. It doesn’t rely on decades-old nostalgia, although there is a bit of that too in mostly unobtrusive ways. But like the somewhat slow and disjointed beginning, eventually it all just washes over you, especially as the riveting action kicks in, taking you from the trenches to space and back again. The only downside of the thrilling battles in the third act is that it means less time with the leads, especially Jones, Luna and Mendelsohn, whose performances make up for the script’s occasional deficiencies.

‘Rogue One’ is one of the best Star Wars films ever made. Only time will tell if it will surpass ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ as the franchise standard bearer.

LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer

comes off as a melodramatic contrivance.

It’s unfortunate, not just because it’s a waste of a talented ensemble but because the film has a worthy goal: highlighting the human need for connection by exploring universal concepts of love, death and time.

But it undermines itself by mixing in greedy manipulation, a forced magical element and a painfully precious ending.

Will Smith is Howard, the oncegregarious leader of a big, successful advertising firm. He’s charismatic and inspirational, and tells his staff that everyone on Earth is motivated by the longing for love, the wish for more time and the fear of death.

But Howard withdraws into depres-

sion and isolation after his young daughter dies, spending his working hours silently building and collapsing domino towers and sitting at home alone in a bare apartment.

This is bad for the bottom line, which is the main concern for Howard’s closest colleagues, Whit (Edward Norton), Claire (Kate Winslet) and Simon (Michael Pena). Because Howard is the company’s main shareholder, the other three can’t make moves without him.

At first, they reach out in vain in friendship, then resort to more devious means, spying on their boss and trying to prove he has become incompetent so they can override his authority.

They hire a detective, who finds that

Howard has been sending letters addressed to Love, Time and Death. So his colleagues decide to trick him by hiring actors to play human apparitions of those concepts who will respond to Howard in person. By filming these encounters and editing out the actors, Whit, Claire and Simon will have evidence of Howard’s incompetence.

Helen Mirren is a kind-eyed Death in a bright blue coat. Jacob Latimore plays Time as an angry skate punk.

Kiera Knightley is Love, quick to cry and prone to trite declarations.

But even this stellar cast can’t make such selfish sneakiness jibe with idea of “collateral beauty” (what is that, anyway?)

SANDY COHEN AP Entertainment Writer

review

A bold and stirring adventure Rogue One 133 minutes

L

ike any film with the dreaded ‘spinoff’ label, ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ seemed suspicious on paper.

For a while all the odds looked stacked against it too: reshoots, script changes and a director in Gareth Edwards whose last blockbuster “Godzilla” had visual flair but no humanity.

Not to mention the fact that the film would be asking us to learn a dozen new characters with strange names, none of which were Skywalker or Solo.

And, of course, as with any franchise there’s that ever-present knowledge that, in some ways, this is another lineitem on a corporate profit sheet.

As it turns out, those should-be liabilities were only assets in the end.

review

Stellar cast but no thing of beauty Collateral Beauty 97 minutes

With its cast of Oscar-calibre actors and pervasive theme of loss, ‘Collateral Beauty’ should have been a deeply moving tear-jerker. Instead, it

Diego Luna’s performance as Cassian Andor in ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ makes up for some script deficiences.

18 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

podcasts

Fun festive listening and painful memories Of course, at times it’s something of a one-note joke, but when it’s a joke we’re all in on with memories of our own horrors of the past, it’s a really good one. Well worth a listen.

Website: http://getmortified.com/ podcast/

By Stephen Hunt shunt@tribunemedia.net

I

f you’re looking for a show to listen to while you make your Christmas preparations this weekend, here’s a few that might bring a smile or two as you prepare - or drink - the eggnog.

The Nerdist If ever you’ve caught the follow-up show to ‘The Walking Dead’, the postepisode chat show ‘The Talking Dead’, then you know host Chris Hardwick.

‘The Nerdist’ is his podcast hangout, where he sits down with a variety of celebrities and just lets the conversation wander all over the place.

He is, without a doubt, an inveterate nerd, but he’s a great host, bouncing the chat from topic to topic without ever seeming scattered.

The latest show features guests She And Him, the band featuring Zooey Deschanel and Matthew Ward, as they chat about Christmas traditions, favourite movies, TV shows they love and more.

It’s a fun listen, even though it was clearly recorded some time ago - Matthew’s Christmas wish is for a woman to be US president, for example. Spoiler alert: that didn’t happen.

Often on chat shows, celebrities start a little guarded but there’s none of that here, just a relaxing chat with good company. Not always for young ears, it should be noted, with occasional

music

D MAC back for Christmas in Exuma THE sound of music will rock Exuma this Christmas season when ‘D MAC’ and 28 of his musical friends converge on Regatta Park, Georgetown, for a three-day festival.

I Tell My Husband The News

Zooey Deschanel, remembered for her appearance in the movie ‘ Elf’, chats about Christmas traditions and more in ‘The Nerdist’ swearing.

Website: www.nerdist.com

Mortified Podcast What are the horrifying things from your youth that still plague you to this day? That’s the basis of this show, where adults share the embarassing things that they created as kids - diaries, letters, lyrics, poems and more.

A lot of it is based around their live shows, so it often comes over as snippets from a stand-up set. But it’s The event kicks off with a free gospel concert on December 22 folowed by two all-star concerts featuring top entertainers on December 23 and 24. The musical extravaganza unites a cross section of DJs, entertainers, bands and singers from a multiple of genres including gospel, Rake ‘n’ Scrape, Reggae, Soca and Calypso, with Bahamian food and an authentic Bahamian cultural show showcasing limbo and fire dancers adding to the attraction.

‘D MAC & Friends’ Christmas in Exuma’ was first hosted in 2013 and re-booted in 2015 with such success

somehow cathartic to hear other people sharing the things that haunt them still from their youth.

Seriously, the number of times in any week when I remember something from many, many years ago and still feel horrified by the shame of that moment that for everyone else at the time was otherwise innocuous, so it’s nice to hear others revealing similar angst.

Again, this is more of an adult show than for young ears, with swearing as part of the stand-up shows as you might expect. that, this year, the event was expanded to three nights, including one of gospel music honouring Exuma’s iconic singer/songwriter Al Gibson.

Performances by popular gospel artists, choirs and praise teams from Nassau and Exuma are scheduled, notably Denczil Rolle and Friends, Daneisha Curry, Karrington McKenzie, The McKenzie Sisters, The Taylor Children, Farmer’s Hill Praise Team and Church of God Of Prophecy District Youth Choir. The gospel concert will be hosted by Pastor Vaughn Miller with music by DJ Godson and DJ Counsellor.

A fun little oddity, this podcast does exactly what it says in the title, with USA Today journalist Shannon Rae Green telling her husband what is in the news. Her husband, Dusty Terrill, is a comedian somewhat unplugged from the daily headlines, so his take on what is going on adds a little light-hearted fun.

When she tells him about the latest update for the Galaxy Note phone, he wonders if it’s going to stop make them exploding or just update them to being lighters instead of phones.

It’s a fairly short podcast, only about a quarter of an hour, and very mellow. There’s also a nice recipe for a cough remedy, with a glass of bourbon with honey and lemon added to it and warmed. I prefer a similar one, without the honey and lemon or warming and merely raised in salute before drinking.

Ideal for enjoying at Christmas parties.

Website: http://www.stitcher.com/ podcast/usa-today/i-tell-my-husbandthe-news The two-part all star concert and the Kalik BeerFest features an impressive lineup, including D MAC, Elon Moxey, Veronica Bishop, Blaudy, Bodine, Sammi Star, MDeez and Benje, all accompanied by Exuma’s Tropical Breeze Band. Also performing are The Synergy Band, The Calypso Band and The Sweet Love Band. The concert will be hosted by The Mighty Pencil and Dwight Hart, with music by DJ Rev, DJ Scooby, DJ Spliff and Code Red. The concert both nights will honour Exuma legends George Whylly, Kenneth Nixon and Godfrey Bowe.

The Tribune | Weekend | 19

Friday, December 16, 2016

books

My word - what a lengthy journey

T

hirty-eight years ago, author Fay Knowles, her late mother and young sons took a trip to Scotland to revisit their Scottish roots.

During their 1978 journey, Fay scribbled notes and researched books and local brochures about the parts of Scotland they were exploring, while her mother took them on a tour of her old haunts. When they returned to Devon, where her mother lived at the time, Fay continued to write down what she had learned about their Scottish ancestors and the vibrant country of her and her mother’s birth. She called her minimemoir ‘The Scottish Connection’.

“I didn’t know what I had in mind for this personal journal. I just knew I was moved to record as much as I could of our Scottish family history and of Scotland in general,” Fay, a long time resident of the Bahamas, said.

That journal became a 4,000-word article but it languished in a drawer for many years. She said she could not find a market for it as it was too long for most travel publications. Fay was reluctant to reduce the word count as she would have to cut much valuable

information.

Finally, the editor of a prominent Canadian magazine said he would like to publish it but, because of its length might have to run it over several issues.

A year went by, during which time Fay added more information and some old photos to her own file for ‘The Scottish Connection’, before the Canadian publication told her they had decided not to run the article.

Fay, a trained newspaper reporter who has had many articles published in Bahamian and British publications, did not give up. She kept searching online for possible markets for ‘The Scottish Connection’ and submitted the article to several more publications, with no success. She put it aside for a while and released ‘Sunbeams from the Heart - A Collection of Twelve Romantic Short Stories’ and a romantic suspense novel ‘Love at Sunset,.

With the success of these two books, it became apparent to her that she should turn ‘The Scottish Connection’ into a book and also release it on Amazon. After her mother passed away, she had added more information to the mini-memoir about her ances-

A walk with God through prayer

By DENISE MAYCOCK dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A former Miss Bahamas turned ordained minister has added author to her repertoire with the launch of her first book, ‘Dwelling In The Secret Place’.

The book, by Darlene Davis-Hord, is about an intimate walk with God through prayer and is dedicated to her late father, Donald W Davis, mother

Darlene Davis-Hord signing books at Logos bookstore, Harbour Bay Plaza.

Dolores Joyce Cooper-Davis, and her spiritual mentor, the late Dr Myles Munroe.

Author Fay Knowles tors, obtained from birth, death and marriage certificates that had been in her mother’s possession. “I scanned old photos from that 1978 trip to Scotland and others from later trips there, as well as getting permission from online tourism sites to use some of their photos, to include in ‘The Scottish Connection’,” she said.

Finally ‘The Scottish Connection: A Journey Back - Mini-memoir’ was ready for publication as a 50-page fully illustrated book, which contains a wealth of information - Scottish ancestry, historical facts, genealogy, comparable 1978 prices, geographical descriptions, personal anecdotes, nostalgia and precious old photos.

She engaged Amazon bestselling and internationally recognised Baha-

mian author Tanya R Taylor to design and format ‘The Scottish Connection’ for publication and the e-book was released on Amazon and now in paperback.

One Amazon customer reviewed it favourably, writing “The author takes you along on a fascinating journey with her and her family, and you feel as if you were right there with them ... This mini-memoir is well worth every moment of the read.”

Fay Knowles’ books can be found at amazon.com/author/fayknowles. Connect with her on her blog - http://www. fayknowles.com; Twitter - @fayknowlesbooks; and Facebook fayknowles

Mrs Davis-Hord is an ordained minister at The Faith Center in Sunrise, Florida, and an instructor at the Henry B Fernandez Institute. She attributes the inspiration for her book on prayer to her passion and gift of intercessory prayer for world leaders.

She has recently presented copies of her book to the Prime Minister, Perry Christie, and Governor General, Dame Marguerite Pindling.

She said many residents who attended the book launch at Logos bookstore, Harbour Bay Shopping Plaza, had heard her interviews with Vaughn Miller on ZNS or on local radio stations, and she was grateful for their backing. “Not only am I appreciative of their support, their stories have further encouraged me to help others and walk into my purpose that God has pre-destined for me,” she said.

Mrs Davis-Hord is the founder of Daughters of Zion-Women of Destiny (DOZ-WOD), a five-months transformational programme that helps women become Women of Destiny.

DOZ recently celebrated its second High Tea Party, Graduation and Awards ceremony at the Carolina Club Mansion, in Margate, Florida, where 18 mentees aged between 21 and 50 graduated. It was attended by over 300 persons.

At the event, Mrs Davis-Hord received a special Congressional Commendation from US Congresswoman Frederic Wilson, who acknowledged that the DOZ-WOD organisation would be added into the Congressional Record, a unique commendation.

Copies of ‘Dwelling in the Secret Place’ can be purchased at Logos bookstore.

20 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

charity

Starry, starry night at Sapodilla Photos/FELICITY INGRAHAM

By FELICITY INGRAHAM

T

he Charitable Arts Foundation hosted a night under the stars at Sapodilla to bring in the festive season and raise thousands of dollars to support arts in the Bahamas, including a special allocation to the Hurricane Matthew relief fund.

The West Bay Street restaurant came alive to Christmas carols performed Rake N’ Scrape style by the Rhythm N’ Youth band and festive island melodies by the Bahamas National Youth Choir, led by Cleophas Adderley. “Bethlehemu”, a Nigerian carol, and Noel Dexter’s Jamaican carol were performed as were old English lute melodies and 16th century French tunes. Keri Sherman, soprano, and Dana Knowles, baritone, sang solos such as “These are a Few of My Favourite Things” and “Go Where I send Thee”, a Bahamian spiritual.

The works of noted Bahamian artists were displayed, including pieces by Stan Burnside, Brent Malone, Chantal Bethel, Kendal Hanna, John Cox and Antonius Roberts.

As well as the musical performances, the evening featured an entertaining auction hosted by Dionisio D’Aguilar, in which a dinner prepared by Chef Simeon Hall Jr, served to a party of 12 with all the dishes done, $500 towards the gourmet grocery, and Young’s fine wines were auctioned off as a package.

A Christmas Bazaar featured handcrafted pieces, including island-inspired jewellery and accessories by Nadia Irena, collector’s straw bags designed

by Barbara Jesubatham, the works of Jessica Colebrooke, artist and ceramicist, and pashminas and handbags by O’Linda M Lee. The annual concert aims to nurture and develop the creative talents, artistic abilities and cultural exposure of the people of the Bahamas. The Charitable Arts Foundation Council administers the disbursement of up to $100,000 annually in grants to qualifying persons.

Applications are considered in the categories of Fine Arts, Dance, and Choreography, Acting and Directing, Voice, Music Composition and Performance, Curatorial Studies, Playwriting, Cultural Exhibition, Film and Video.

Sir Arthur Foulkes, Lady Foulkes, patron of the event, and Ministry of Tourism executives enjoy the night.

Dr Gail Saunders watches the auction attentively.

The Bahamas National Youth Choir performing the “Gloria Fanfare” by Jeffrey L Ames.

Cleophas Adderley greets guests after conducting the Bahamas National Youth Choir.

Stanesha Diligence sings “Silent Night”.

Nadia Irena’s unique jewellery, handbags and accessories.

The youngest Rake N’ Scraper, a three-year-old, shakes the maracas in time to the Christmas beat.

“Many of the artists who performed are past recipients of grants. They are all donating their time and remarkable talents to contribute to our growth.

Similarly, the participating visual artists continue to be generous in their support of the Charitable Arts Foundation,” said the Council.

C I Gibson Senior High School will receive $10,000 to rebuild its music

Bahamian artists’ work was on show. room and replace instruments lost in Hurricane Matthew in October as it looks to regain its position as a rival band amongst high schools after the success of the night. Student Stanesha Diligence received a standing ovation for her soprano rendition of “Silent Night”. Spoken word in Baritone was performed by Prince Blyden and Randell Johnson performed a solo.

Friday, December 16, 2016

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22 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

literary lives

sir orville turnquest

What manner of man is this?

Sir Orville Turnquest’s new biography of the Duke of Windsor is unique and a mustread for all Bahamians, Sir Christopher Ondaatje says

W

hat is extraordinary about the biography ‘What Manner of Man Is This?’ is that it was written by a black Bahamian who was born in Grant’s Town on July 19, 1929, who earned his way from “Over the Hill” the poor section of Nassau - to become the fifth Governor General of an independent Bahamas where he served from January 3, 1994, until his retirement on November 13, 2001.

The author, therefore, is well qualified to write about the Duke of Windsor who, after only ten months as King of England, gave up his throne to

Former Governor General Sir Orville Turnquest

A detail of the cover of Sir Orville Turnquest’s new biography of the Duke of Windsor reveals the sharply dressed, diffident Duke in stark contrast to the Bahamians around him.

marry a twice-divorced commoner, and then reluctantly accepted a position as Governor of the Bahamas. This is a book that everyone in the Bahamas should read.

The Bahamas was then a colony, and for the Duke it meant banishment and a geographical position far away from European and German influence.

After renouncing the throne as King Edward VIII of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions (the only other job he had ever had) on December 10, 1936, he assumed his new title Duke of Windsor and was free to marry his mistress, the American Mrs Wallis Simpson.

It may have been the love story of the age but it was also the scandal of the century. The Duke arrived in the Bahamas in August, 1940, and was sworn in as the 55th Governor, and the fact that such a famous man was posted

“His personal attitude of superiority, together with his constant display of class prejudice and obvious ingrained bigotry against labourers and blacks, exposed his true nature as a racist.”

to a small, remote island colony of the British Empire during such a dramatic period in world history led the United States and Britain to place a special focus on the Bahamas. Why Sir Orville Turnquest is so qualified to write about this man and this period is that he eventually became the 70th in the chain of succession to the important Governor’s job.

While all of the other books about the Duke and Duchess of Windsor have sought to praise the couple’s positive involvement in Bahamian life during the difficult years of World War II, without exception they have all been written by non-Bahamians, telling their stories from secondary sources. Sir Orville, on the other hand, has written

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Friday, December 16, 2016

his biography from the point of view of a black Bahamian who was only 11 when the Duke of Winder assumed his position. He was privy to a multitude of happenings during the Duke’s five-year term as Governor.

Sir Orville also had the privilege of serving not only as a Bahamian Cabinet minister, and later as Governor General, but has interacted with members of the Royal Family at both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. His book examines in detail the lives, the record, and the actions of the Duke and Duchess in their roles as Governor and First Lady during one of the most turbulent periods in Bahamas and world history. With the advantage of firsthand perspective Sir Orville credits the Duke as doing much to improve the economic base of the country - but he exposes areas of the Duke’s governance that were abject failures.

He also exposes him as a racially biased individual who fell far short of implementing any social change, preferring to mix with the white oligarchic minority which comprised only 15 per cent of the Bahamian population, and to accept strictly enforced discriminatory practices.

In Sir Sidney Poitier’s exceptional introduction to Sir Orville Turnquest’s biography he says: “What makes this book stand out from the many books about the Duke and Duchess of Windsor is that Sir Orville describes the hard life that the majority of black Bahamians experienced during those years - the racist culture, the lack of good education, the subsistence-level jobs if they were lucky enough to have one, the dire living conditions and the lack of full voting rights and adequate representation to address these very issues - he speaks knowledgeably and with the authenticity that only someone from that time and place can provide. When he takes the former King to task for doing little to nothing to address the racial disparity that existed at that time, he speaks passionately from the deep well of personal experience that only a young black boy from ‘Over the Hill’ can feel ... And when he analyses the few accomplishments and many failures of the Duke of Windsor’s tenure in the office of Governor of the Bahamas he speaks authoritatively from the experience of someone who has hands-on knowledge of the manner of the office that both of these men held.”

Banishment ‘What Manner of Man Is This?’ is an unvarnished account of a crucial stage

“The Duke is exposed as a racially biased individual who fell far short of implementing any social change, preferring to mix with the white oligarchic minority which comprised only 15 per cent of the Bahamian population, and to accept strictly enforced discriminatory practices.”

The Duke and Duchess of Windsor in Bermuda in 1940, en route to the Bahamas where the Duke was to take up the post of Governor.

The Duke and Duchess were unhappy with the living conditions in Government House and undertook an expensive renovation. “Small, hideous, hardly any furniture - all unsatisfactory”, the Duchess had written in a letter before arriving in the Bahamas of Bahamian history. One of its goals is to intertwine the unique history and geography of the islands with the history and legacy of one man. It succeeds in doing this, and sometimes makes startling revelations. Even before arriving to take up his post in 1940, the Duke wrote to his London solicitor George Allen describing his feelings about “taking up this wretched appointment” and saying that he viewed “the prospect of an indefinite period of exile on those islands with profound gloom and despondency”. He further wrote to Winston Churchill saying that it “leaves no doubt in my mind but that my banishment to these islands was as good a war time expedience for a hopeless and insoluble situation as could be found”.

All the arrangements for the official welcome of the new Governor included

only white officials, their wives and prominent individuals in the white community. Nevertheless, at a ceremony at Clifford Park, the black community turned out in their thousands to welcome the new Royal Governor.

They made it a festive occasion and the Duke then assiduously set about his task of governance and to preside over the regular meetings of the Executive Council. The Duchess started her own duties as First Lady - including the task of renovating Government House on Mount Fitzwilliam which the Duke and Duchess found to be completely unbefitting as their living quarters. “I have awful reports of the house - small, hideous, hardly any furniture - all unsatisfactory”, the Duchess had written in a letter before arriving.

The Windsors therefore, letting

their feelings be known, moved out of Government House after only one week, and in one of his first meetings the Duke proposed that the building be renovated at some considerable expense while the Royal couple first moved into a palatial residence on Prospect Ridge owned by the British millionaire Frederick Sigrist, and later that summer to Westbourne - the country mansion owned by Sir Harry Oakes - until the refurbishments were completed. A new three-storey west wing was added to Government House with four guest suites to accommodate his personal staff. Expensive air-conditioning units were installed in each of the major rooms including the west wing. It was not a good beginning.

Continued on page 24

24| The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16, 2016

Photo: Aaron Davis

Continued from page 23 Damning insight The next year the Duke, in a confidential letter written on July 26, 1941, to the Right Honourable Walter Moyne - the Secretary of State for the Colonies - wrote that “the Membership of the Council I have inherited in the Bahamas leaves much to be desired”.

Nevertheless, on August 21, 1940, the Duke used his power to convince his Executive Council to make an interestfree war loan to Britain of £250,000 (equivalent to US$1 million) from the colony’s surplus funds. Hardly an armslength transaction. He also wrote in the same letter “any suggestion of the appointment of a coloured member to Executive Council would not only be unwelcome but meet with the utmost hostility”. This is a candid portrayal of the Duke of Windsor’s assessment of the Bahamian local leadership of that period. A damning insight.

In Sir Orville’s incisive and historical biography he describes the collapse of the Bahamian tourist industry in the months following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour in December, 1941, resulting in serious unemployment as a major problem. However the British and American governments had agreed to build a number of military bases in the West Indies, one being New Providence which developed two sites: Main Field (later named Oakes Field) and another Satellite Field near the western end of the island. Twentyfive hundred Bahamian labourers were hired and placed under the direction of two white Bahamians. Other Bahamians flocked to New Providence hoping to get higher paid work from these two foreign projects.

But this did not happen. Bahamian unskilled workers were being paid onethird of their American counterparts and the semi-skilled workers one-tenth of what the same-skilled American worker was making. The disquiet eventually erupted into dissatisfaction which escalated into the Burma Road Riot on June 1, 1942. The Duke of Windsor was at the time attending a meeting in New York and the acting governor Heape was unable to stop the police shooting into the crowd. One worker was killed, and others seriously wounded.

On arriving back in Nassau the Duke extended the existing curfew and the following morning met with black leaders who urged him to act quickly and to publicly rebuke oppression, inequality and poverty. To the Duke’s credit

Sir Orville Turnquest’s son, Tommy, watches over his father at a book signing at Logos bookstore, Harbour Bay Shopping Plaza. ‘What Manner of Man Is This’ has been breaking records for sales since its release on December 5. he made an immediate and successful national broadcast urging calm, and followed it with a negotiated wage increase with a free midday meal. He also established a commission of inquiry to review the causes and the effects of the riots.

In 1942 the total population of the Bahamas was 70,000. In an enormously important meeting following the riot Dr C R Walker, together with a delegation of three members of the Bahamas Federation of Labour, in an audience with the Governor and his Executive Council, went a long way to abating the antipathy between white and black Bahamians, and to improve the disproportionate systems relating to suffrage, land ownership, job opportunities, fair wages and education. These were all serious Bahamian problems.

‘The Contract’ In September, three months after the violent riot and a devastating Bay Street fire, the Duchess of Windsor wrote to her Aunt Bessie Merryman of Baltimore, Maryland, saying “The negroes here are busy complaining, now that the base is nearing completion and

some of them are being laid off”. Her observations were correct. Unemployment was growing at an alarming rate because of the recent completion of the two airfields. The Duke therefore negotiated an agreement with Washington for the recruitment of up to 5,000 Bahamians to be employed as farm labourers in the United States.

It was probably one of the most outstanding achievements of his governorship.

The Bahamians needed jobs, and the United States needed labourers.

The details of what became known as “The Contract” were read into the records of the Bahamian Parliament on March 31, 1943. In the end a total of 5,762 Bahamians were employed in the United States - one-twelfth of the entire population. And although the farm labour programme had a major economic impact on the Bahamas, increasing the economic worth of the vast majority of the population, it had a negative effect on the Out Islands, as many of the men remained in the United States or Nassau, leaving women and children behind.

Harry Oakes During the early morning of Thursday, July 8, 1943, the bludgeoned and burned body of Sir Harry Oakes was discovered in Westbourne, his palatial house in Nassau, by his close friend Harold Christie. It was, at the time, the world’s most celebrated murder and is still unsolved.

The Duke, ignoring local advice, arranged for the transfer of the Commissioner of Police in the Bahamas to Trinidad, and hired two Miami Police officers, Captain E W Melchen and Captain James O Barker, to come to Nassau and head the investigation. It was a ridiculously inept decision which led to the arrest and imprisonment of Count Alfred de Marigny, Oakes’ sonin-law, who had secretly married his teenaged daughter, and with whom he was not on good terms.

De Marigny was charged with the murder and in a sensational trial which began on October 14, 1943, and ended the following month, was acquitted.

De Marigny’s acquittal was a severe embarrassment for the Governor, and the murder of Sir Harry will always

The Tribune | Weekend | 25

Friday, December 16, 2016

Forgotten facts Paul C Aranha be remembered as the single most infamous unsolved crime of the century. It marred the Windsor years in the Bahamas.

Dislike and disgust In the final two chapters of his admirable book, Sir Orville has written on the legacy of the Duke of Windsor and his wife. Although the Duchess involved herself in the British Red Cross, the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire, volunteered for activities at a US military canteen and established two infant-welfare clinics in Nassau, she never liked the Bahamas or its people.

More than that, her correspondence to her favourite aunt, Mrs Bessie Merryman, provides an insight to her feelings of dislike and even disgust. “Naturally we loathe the job, but it was the only way out of a difficult situation - as we did not want to return to England except under our conditions.”

The Duke, too, expressed equally negative sentiments about his appointment and tenure in the Bahamas, but nevertheless set about establishing positive roles for themselves in the hope of getting another appointment as an Ambassador to the United States, or even Governor General of Canada.

Despite his special qualifications and exceptional influence, Sir Orville states, “his personal attitude of superiority, together with his constant display of class prejudice and obvious ingrained bigotry against labourers and blacks, exposed his true nature as a racist”.

Both he and the Duchess approached their job with a negative attitude and with loathing instead of a sense of purpose. The Duke was weak. He was not only prejudiced but disloyal. Some other writers have even described him as a traitor who had pro-Nazi leanings and who was involved in illegal financial and currency exchange dealings prohibited by wartime exchange control regulations.

At 12.45pm on April 29, 1945 - a Sunday - the Duke broadcast his formal farewell speech to the people of the Bahamas. That same day, the Duke and Duchess paid a farewell visit to the United States canteen where a large number of Royal Air Force men and canteen workers were present. They were presented with gifts. The following day there was a farewell gathering at the Infant Welfare Clinic, and that evening they hosted a farewell cocktail party on the terrace of Government House.

Two days later, the Duke and Duchess left the Bahamas en route to the United States.

The Duke of Windsor was never again given another ambassadorial position.

‘What Manner of Man is This, The Duke of Windsor’s Years in The Bahamas’, published by Grant’s Town Press, is available at all major book stores in New Providence, Grand Bahama, Harbour Island and Abaco as well as the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas and The Linen Shop on Bay Street. Hardcover edition $35, paperback for $25.20, and the eBook on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, iBooks and other eBook retailers worldwide.

NEXT WEEK: Philip Van Doren Stern, whose work inspired the Christmas classic film ‘Its a Wonderful Life’ • Sir Christopher Ondaatje is an adventurer and writer resident in the Bahamas. A Sri Lankan-born CanadianEnglishman, he is the author of several books, including “The Last Colonial”.

The novelty and glamour of early flying

B

efore I write any more about Bahamas Airways Ltd (BAL), I must correct a glaring error that my good friend, Orrie Sands, brought to my attention. The airline went out of business on October 9, 1970.

In 1936, the local press had firmly supported the need for a local airline and the Governor of the colony, Sir Bede Clifford, was one of the first to make use of Bahamas Airways’ services. He was invited by Harry Oakes for an aerial cruise over the Exumas and Andros.

Flying was such a novelty - it was only 33 years after the Wright Brothers’ first flight that the press recorded each and every flight - not only of Bahamas Airways but of Pan American’s Miami-Nassau-Miami flights too, giving names of passengers and pilot.

Long before airlines coined the expression ‘frequent flyers’, BAL established a regular clientele, led by the infamous Standard Oil heiress, Marion B Carstairs (1900-1993), owner of Whale Cay in the Berry Islands, and her less-flashy brother, Francis Francis (1906-1982), owner of neighbouring Bird Cay. The list grew to read like a “Who’s Who” of Bahamian and international society.

On January 2, 1935, Col Cleveland C Lansing had bought White Bay Cay, an island in the Exuma Cays now known as Lansing Cay (Report on The Exumas, by W N Aranha, p286), and used Bahamas Airways to get to and fro. David McCullough, President of the Bath and Tennis Club, Palm Beach, flew to Nassau with his family (David and Kayros) to visit Harold Christie.

Other early passengers on BAL included (in alphabetical order) Norman Aranha,

William Aranha, Mr and Mrs John Archbold (heir to another Standard Oil fortune), Roy Arteaga, Lord Beaverbrook, Eugene Dupuch, Errol Flynn, Dr William Foulkes (father of Sir Arthur), Wallace Groves (bought Little Whale Cay in 1936 and, later, developed Freeport), Mr and Mrs Hensley, of London, Ontario, Canada, the Misses Barbara and Stephanie Hensley, Nassau’s Dr A Hugh Johnson, Austin T Levy, the developer of Hatchet Bay Plantations (who had been a passenger on Pan American’s January 2, 1929, inaugural Miami-Nassau flight), Mr and Mrs Valentine Macy (he was another Standard Oil heir), John Maura (Bahamian, who became a World War II RAF pilot), John T McCutcheon (famous American cartoonist and owner of Treasure Island/Salt Cay), David Morrison (injured on a barge at Spanish Wells), Mrs Samuel Nickerson, Mrs J Pasche, artist Diana Pullinger, of London, Dr A Quackenbush, Mrs Stuart Radie, Robert Ripley (of ‘Believe it or not’), Axel Wenner-Gren (Swedish industrialist, with a huge estate on Hog Island), Mrs D Fairchild Wheeler and numerous movie stars. The list goes on.

Eleven Governors of the Bahamas graced the cabins of the colony’s first airline, Sir Bede Clifford being the first, followed by Sir Charles Dundas, the Duke of Windsor, Sir William Murphy, Sir George Sandford (who died in Nassau in 1950 and is buried in the Eastern Cemetery), Sir Robert Neville, the Earl of Ranfurly, Sir Raynor Arthur, Sir Robert Stapledon, Sir Ralph Grey and Sir Francis Cumming-Bruce.

Harold Christie had fathered aviation in the Bahamas, but his mind never wandered from selling land as the accompanying advertisements below show. In The Guardian of January 18, 1941, Harold Christie advertised BAL, five days after he placed an advert for the sale of a cottage at the Lyford Cay Club for £2,200, a far cry from the Lyford Cay Club and community that E P Taylor developed after 1959.

• islandairman@gmail.com

26 | The Tribune | Weekend

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The Tribune | Weekend | 27

Friday, December 16, 2016

animals Animal matters Kim Aranha

Red letter day for me and for animal rights

O

Kim Aranha dressed and ready to be honoured as one the 12 Red Dress Leading Ladies at Atlantis on Saturday night

pet

Sweet Butterfinger of the

By The Bahamas Humane Society

week

“You’d better not lay a finger on my Butterfinger.”

That might be the advertisment for a popular chocolate bar, but this Butterfinger loves to be cuddled and snuggled.

Butterfinger is a one-year-old male tabby who is very playful and sweet.

He doesn’t mind sharing his space with the other kittens in the annex but he would really prefer to share a space with you this Christmas.

He promises not to cause too much trouble with your Christmas tree!

Do you have a sweet tooth and soft spot in your home for Butterfinger?

If so, come to the Bahamas Humane Society on Dunmore Avenue, Chippingham, to meet him and the other adoption kittens, or call 323-5138 for more information.

Adoption hours are 11am to 4pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 4pm on Saturday.

• Do you have your 2016 BHS

Patricia Vazquez

n Saturday night a very special thing happened to me.

When you become an animal advocate, an animal rights spokesperson and a supporter of the environment, you will eventually get referred to as a “tree hugger”, or a “crazy” dog or cat lady, or a few other expressions, some too insulting to put here.

To support the rights of animals, the five freedoms, the circle of life and the fragile eco-system takes a very tough skin indeed. You need to be prepared to be turned away, laughed at, hear derisive comments and have people walk out on you or hang up on you. These actions only serve to make an advocate more determined to reach her goal.

For me, it has always been relatively easy to take a firm stand. You simply know what is right and what is wrong.

We know that in some countries animals are now considered “non human” persons with rights of their own, with human beings as their “custodians”.

It was in the early 1980s that I started to be really interested in animal rights and the environment, though as a teenager I was actively part of an anti-vivisection group. Returning to Nassau to live, for good, at 25, I saw so much more than I did as a kid coming home from school. Suddenly, I used different eyes and I could see where things were going wrong. Since then I have dedicated my energies to improve the quality of life for animals in the Bahamas, nurture the precious ecosystem and respect our environment on land and beneath the water.

So you can image my delight when, instead of being made fun of or good heartedly teased for my passion, I was actually honoured … What a wonderful and invigorating experience!

Being chosen as one of the 12 Red

Butterfinger, a young tabby up for adoption at the BHS raffle tickets yet? The grand prize this year is $10,000 in Super Value groceries! The draw will be held on December 30 so there’s still time to come to the BHS, Windermere (east & west), The Sign Man, Bahama Art & Handicraft, or a sales table at Kelly’s

Dress Leading Ladies was amazing.

This year, for the first time, the public was encouraged to nominate women they felt were worthy of the honour. I am told that there were “dozens and dozens” of nominees, many meetings were held and finally they choose the 12 to honour in 2016.

To be honoured is very special indeed and most humbling. But to be honoured for work with animals and the environment is over the top exciting and amazing. This is a giant step towards acceptance from the Bahamas when you put forward a judgment or request that concerns the wellbeing of animals or the environment. Perhaps the starfish will be allowed to multiply and cover our ocean floors once again.

I was so moved and proud, when I was being introduced, to hear them speaking of my role in protecting the sea turtles that led to seeing their numbers grow by being co-chair of the Bahamas Sea Turtle Protection Act (those death threats are but a bad and distant memory) … Operation Potcake was something I used to dream about and we made it happen.

And, as a result, there are less stray dogs on the streets.

Sure, there is a lot of room for improvement.

Presenting that kind of award and recognition to the animal world, to a supporter of the environment and the eco-system, was a huge nod in our direction. I accepted the honour proudly on behalf of all of my fellow advocates (and sometimes activists).

We will continue to try and improve this country for the animals ... and trees, fish, starfish ... and in return hopefully the future generations of children of the Bahamas will be blessed with a beautiful flourishing eco-system, an orderly potcake population and responsible animal ownership. That is if I have anything to do with it!

I am humbled by the abundance of phone calls, messages and emails I have received since Saturday night … such nice and touching words.

The incredible women I walked with at the Red Dress Soiree 2016 were truly an inspiration. Strength, beauty, resilience, tolerance, insight and a strong belief in this country and what our future can be bonded us firmly together.

• Kim Aranha president of the Bahamas Humane Society. See pages 14-15 for the 12 Red Dress Leading Ladies

28 | The Tribune | Weekend

Friday, December 16,

2016

gardening The Blue Beauty tomato was developed

by Wild Boar Farms, of Napa Valley, California

Weird but wonderful Jack Hardy has advice for those thinking of making their own hybrid tomatoes

D

uring my lifetime, the choice of tomatoes to grow lay between the high productivity of hybrids and the superior taste of heirlooms.

Now there is a third choice, tomatoes that have been recently developed so cannot be called heirlooms with any veracity but are open pollinated and can be propagated from their seeds.

What remains to be decided is how they taste. The published reports on a single tomato vary from ‘wonderful’ to ‘almost tasteless’.

Early next year, I will be able to make up my own mind because I have three varieties growing: Indigo Rose, Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye and Blue Beauty. Blue Beauty? What the smurf is that? Welcome to the weird world of anthocyanins.

Anthocyanin is a purple pigment that is also a powerful antioxidant.

We are familiar with it giving colour to blueberries, blackberries, grapes, plums, red cabbage and seagrapes but when it comes to blue tomatoes we tend to pause and give thought and those thoughts may tremble around the word ‘cyanide’. Fear not: blue and purple tomatoes are not poisonous. They were initially developed to increase the healthiness of tomatoes and the colour

was an accidental adjunct.

The tomatoes I have mentioned are all products of natural breeding and have been developed in the United States. Similar tomatoes were developed in Norwich, United Kingdom, using genetic modification.

There is an heirloom tomato called Cherokee Purple and many people looking at one for the first time ask why it is called purple. The main colour of the skin is red but the shoulders have a brownish hue that perhaps has a touch of extra colour that might be purple.

With Indigo Rose tomatoes at the mid-ripening stage the skin colour is unmistakably purple.

Indigo Rose was developed by Oregon State University and the fruits are not large, slightly larger than a golf ball. The fruit takes longer to ripen than most tomatoes of similar size but gives heavy yields. The skin is pink when kept in the shade but turns purple when exposed to the sun. If Indigo Rose is grown in a large container it can be given a quarter turn each day during ripening to share the sunlight. A little judicious pruning of leaves may also be in order. The pink skin will develop blotches of purple, sometimes a purple that is eggplant black, while the blossom end remains pink.

You know a tomato is ripe when the pink turns red. The inside of the fruit is just like a regular pink tomato and I guess many people have been disappointed in the flavour because they expected more from the exotic skin colour.

Blue Beauty was developed by Wild Boar Farms, of Napa Valley, California, and shares many of the characteristics of Indigo Rose. The tomatoes are larger - up to 8oz - and are reputed to

have excellent flavour, even tastier than Cherokee Purple. Both Indigo Rose and Blue Beauty can stay on the vine for longer than most tomatoes and also keep well once picked.

Also from Wild Boar Farms is Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye that produces 8oz to 12oz beefsteak fruits that are dark red with iridescent green vertical stripes.

The interior flesh is yellow with red streaks and is reputed to be very tasty, a tomato that may in time become a true heirloom.

The British GMO blue tomatoes are being grown in Ontario, Canada, under greenhouse conditions and are used for juice. Not the sort of tomato juice you would use in a bloody mary but one with the focus on health benefits.

After seeing what can be done by crossing one tomato with another you may be adventurous enough to try making your own hybrid. To do this you would need two heirloom tomato plants, one to be the mummy and the other to be daddy. To cross two red tomatoes does not sound very exciting to me; we are more likely to get an interesting new tomato from crossing yellow with red, or black with white, and so on. The plant with the largest flowers should be mummy. The operation needs a small pair of scissors and a pair of tweezers, both sterilised. The male parts of the mummy flower are

removed before the flower opens and the flower is then bagged to prevent accidental pollination. When the flower opens a few days later it is pollinated by the male part of the daddy flower, then bagged again. The bags are removed once a tomato starts to form.

The whole procedure takes about 10 minutes spread over two or three days to make a single cross. Do several in case some do not take. I have given you the simplified version. There are many other stipulations, especially to do with weather conditions, and it is best you look up the full process on the internet.

When you have your new hybrid tomato and you like it, you can give it a name. Something with Bahama in it would be nice, or maybe name it after your wife. But the task does not stop at this point. There are four more years to go. What you have is a hybrid and you must stabilise it. We can grow two sets of tomatoes each year very easily in the Bahamas. Take seeds of your hybrid and sow as many as possible starting in August. When you harvest, select the most handsome of your crop and use that as the seeds for another mass sowing in January. Repeat the process for four years - two crops a year, eight generations - and by then the cross will be stabilised and will always produce more or less identical fruits.

You have an heirloom.

• For questions and comments email j.hardy@coralwave.com