DIVALI Projects

PROJECT - DIVALI - The University of the West Indies - Department of Creative and Festival Arts

This began as a desire for me to acknowledge my favorite festival in Trinidad and Tobago. I have been making little forays into adding elements of Divali in my own environment over the years. When I was at PRATT I would light deyas in my Dorm room. At that time it seemed like a strange ritual to my roommates who were not exposed to Hindu culture at all. They would come to know all about my Islands multiculturalism and the fact that we embrace all religions. I believe that the food component is the glue to this fact.

Oil Painting of East Indian Women sweeping with brooms made from coconut leaves. Painting done by Historical Artist Rudolph Bissessarsingh

This is an image from the Virtual Museum of Angelo Bissessarsingh. Two cultures claim the cocoyea broom, Africans and Indians. However the origins of the broom is Indigenous First Peoples to Trinidad and Tobago.

I began exploring the idea of using the bamboo stalks to create lantern shapes for Divali. I experimented with this at the second big River Artists Residency in 1991.

Buoyed by the results I never forgot the beauty of the materials, so in 2018 I proposed a Divali installation to the DCFA. I made the assignment a group class project for the Visual Arts students - VART 1404 - the brief I presented to the class was -: using the provided cocoyea, kite paper (colored tissue paper, jute and glue) create circles and teardrop shapes for an installation focused on The Festival of Light.

2018 - Cocoyea (stripped bamboo stalks)

Note: The unexpected beauty of this installation is the transformation of the Exhibition Hall into a lotus flower pond. The use of limited color - two types of blue, green and pink set the t

2023 - Fabric - the brief: use recycled saris and handmade crepe paper garlands for the Divali Installation.

2024 - Embroidery Thread - String Art the brief: draw with thread.

2025 - the brief - colored electrical tape - Devdas - the iconic scene from one of the costliest Indian movies is the vision.

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