Saturday 24th March 2012  10:00 AM

Transforming Spaces 2012: "Fibre"
Saturday and Sunday, March 24 and 25, 2012

For almost a decade, the Transforming Spaces art tour has acted as a gauge for what?s what in contemporary Bahamian art ? each year, art galleries, artist studios and even outdoor spaces pulled out all the stops to curate art shows that elevated Bahamian art in the local community.

Now in its eighth year, the tour is ready to do something radically different in order to turn the eyes of the globe to the flourishing Bahamian art scene: for the first time ever, the committee introduced the theme of ?Fibre?, calling for artists to use indigenous material ? local fibers like straw, coconut, cotton, and sisal, to name only a sampling ? in innovative ways.

"The decision", said committee member Pam Burnside, "came out of the drive by another artist-formed committee ? Creative Nassau ? to designate Nassau in the global cultural world as a City of Folk Art in the UNESCO designated Creative Cities Network."

?We?ve been discussing the importance of the straw industry, as well as Junkanoo, so as part of our committee activities we decided we would transfer the thought of using the straw into Transforming Spaces this year,? said Burnside.

?That?s been one of our goals in the committee, to make sure this tour gets out to the world so people actually come here. It?s a fabulous opportunity for us to have people come to The Bahamas for its art and culture as opposed to just our sun, sand and sea.?

Indeed, though the number of art spaces and participating artists has changed each year, the desire to bring artists together in a large tour to expose Bahamian art has been a driving factor since the tour?s inception eight years ago by a core committee of dedicated participants.

The tours take place on Saturday March 24 and Sunday March 25, beginning promptly at 10am at The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas. Spaces are limited however, so purchasing tickets is recommended. Tickets are $30 and can be purchased from either The National Art Gallery of The Bahamas downtown (328.5800) or Doongalik Studios on Village Road (394.1886).

Click HERE to view official TS2012 Website.

Click HERE to read article on TS2012 by Sonia Farmer of The Guardian.