VALUABLE WORKS of art at the National Gallery of Jamaica in downtown Kingston were spared destruction during Hurricane Ivan, although the building and fixtures sustained water damage.Works in the National Collection as well as others on loan to the gallery were safely stored in safe zones within the buildings, and so survived unscathed.
However, leaks in the roof and the air-conditioning system resulted in significant water damage to the parquet flooring of the gallery, the carpets and casings of the air-conditioning ducts.
Consultant curator Veerle Poupeye told The Sunday Gleaner that "Some areas still have active leaks during rainfall, while in other areas there is significant damage to the flooring. So works have not been mounted in these areas. It will take some time for the damage to be repaired and the causes addressed, but we are working on it."
Following a temporary closure for damage assessment, the gallery will reopen to the public on Tuesday. Most of the collections and temporary exhibitions have been re-installed, but parts of the Everald Brown retrospective, as well as the permanent collections will not be available for public viewing, Ms. Poupeye said.
Due to the storm, several gallery events and deadlines have been rescheduled. Deadline for entries to the 2004 National Biennial exhibition has been extended to October 8, with the show's formal opening scheduled for December 12. The Everald Brown restrospective, titled Rainbow Valley has been extended until November 19.
NORMAL OPERATIONS
Meanwhile, works at Gallery Pegasus located on the compound of the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in New Kingston were safely stored away, so the gallery resumed normal operations immediately following the hurricane.
"It's been rather quiet since then," owner/manager Vera Ennis told The Sunday Gleaner. "I have a stock show currently featuring works by various artists and this will run until late October."
It is also 'business as usual' at the Mutual Gallery and Art Centre on Oxford Road in the New Kingston area.
"All our works of arts are safe and intact," curator Gilou Bauer told The Sunday Gleaner. "We had taken precautions and removed all paintings from the lower level, storing them upstairs in the event of flooding."
With shutters battened, no flooding occurred and, with the aid of a generator, the gallery resumed partial operations after the storm. With the return of electricity, normal opening hours are now being observed. A new exhibition by abstract artist Stanford Watson is scheduled to open on Tuesday, and will run until October 15.
Revolution Gallery on Lady Musgrave Road in Kingston fared well, too.
"No leaks, no water, and all the works are fine," curator Carol Campbell told The Sunday Gleaner.
Although electricity has not yet been restored, the gallery is opened from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily, and the current stock show will run through to the end of October when a fund-raising exhibition is planned.
HERITAGE SITES
Meanwhile, the Jamaica National Heritage Trust (JNHT) has stated that some of its heritage sites were badly damaged during the hurricane.
Concerns were expressed about the Manchester Courthouse (where a section of the building was left hanging over the road) and the Old Courthouse in Spanish Town, St Catherine (sections of which crumbled during the storm). The Trust is continuing assessment at other sites to determine damage.
- G.H.
