Young talent on show at Queen’s Royal College Hall

Three events are supporting a display of work by artists Ihsan Atiba, Satori Hassanali, and Ariann Thompson over a period of ten days. The first event—The Quorum—is a soft launch of the three art collections and takes place on August 5, from 6 pm to 10 pm, at Queen’s Royal College Hall, Queen’s Park West, St Clair. The artists will all be in residence on that day and, apart from viewing the collections for the first time, it will be a time to interact with other artists and art lovers as well as interested members of the public, family and friends and the media. There will be a cash bar in the foyer of the Hall. The second event—The Forum—scheduled for August 7, is an “Open Mic” event and is hosted by The Royalty Club. This will give fellow artists an opportunity to show case their talents and of course the attendees will be able to view the exhibition at the same time.

The third event—The Run—is a family day and fete match bringing together all of the past time glories that this exhibition celebrates. This will be held on August 14, on the college’s Grounds and is hosted by the QRC Sunday Sweater Football Club (QSS). Part proceeds of these events will go to the QRC Renovation Fund. In addition, throughout the week of August 8-13, the exhibition will be open in the hall from 2 pm to 6 pm daily. The pieces displayed are on sale at very reasonable prices and in addition, the artists have provided other memorabilia for sale to those who want other options. This collection is well worth viewing and attendance at the events will be a pleasurable experience.

introduction to the three artists 

Satori Hassanali

Satori has titled his collection Sunday Sweat, celebrating the wonderful tradition of informal and formal football games on a Sunday. He illustrates that this gathering of young and old is more than recreation and invites the attendees to be part of this experience. Satori is largely self taught after being introduced to art at his alma mater QRC, although he does have a minor in Fine Arts. He has participated in a joint exhibition two years ago and has gathered two of his friends to exhibit with him this year. 

Satori’s work is an eclectic collection of human figures, interaction of people, culture and environment and uses poetry and prose to marshal his ideas. Perhaps he will incorporate his writing in future projects. Satori is also influenced by reflective music, poetry and prose of a variety of genres. While this collection is presented in acrylic and oil with some work in ink, Satori is constantly experimenting and learning new forms of expression. 

Ariann Mieka Thompson

Ariann Thompson has been passionate about photography for as long as she can remember. Her love for travel, exploration and for the Caribbean, which she calls home, has had a huge influence on her creative development. Her first formal training in photography was at St Johns University in New York, as part of her communications degree. In 2006 one of her photographs was chosen to be included as part of BP’s nationwide exhibition. In 2009 Ariann journeyed to Stellenbosch, South Africa, to formally study photography and graduated with distinction. This year her work was used on the cover for the current Discover Trinidad and Tobago magazine.

Ariann’s love for experimentation, building unique sets and backdrops, and the bright colours, vibrant imagery and diverse people and cultures in Trinidad and Tobago are demonstrated in this collection, which is entitled Sundaze. She muses that while we excitedly participate in a variety of Sunday activities, the day itself passes so quickly that the memory of what we did is blurred.

Ihsan Khayri Atiba

Ihsan has been expressing himself through art since early childhood. He studied Visual Arts at UWI and presently teaches in his field at secondary school level. He is a practicing artist, graphic designer and poet, though this is first exhibition since graduation. Ihsan prefers dry media—pencil, chalk pastel and charcoal and creates still life and abstract interpretations of the human body and its movement. He explains that generally he sets a theme for any body of work, influenced by his vision of what he wants to demonstrate. 

He also illustrates his concepts and ideas in graphic design projects. He often blends his writing —prose and poetry, into his artwork. Ihsan’s collection is entitled Sunday School and reveals that while many attend Sunday Service to attain resolution and answers, he often has more questions. He is therefore presenting a collection of Art and Poetry thematically exploring a few of these questions.