Contributed
Booster 61

Peter Wayne Lewis is an artist living and working between Boston and Jamaica. His entry in the exhibition Jamaican Biennial 2006, titled 'Booster 61', is composed of acrylic on paper. Here he discusses his work with Dr. Jonathan Greenland, executive director of the National Gallery of Jamaica.

Please describe your piece in the Biennial Booster 61

The title of my painting is 'Booster', which refers to the actual word found in the dictionary. The meaning to me, though, is that I have 'amplified' the paintings: I use a larger scale, and more force, pressure and power when creating them. I want the viewers' sensory systems to be overloaded by the larger physical presence, the qualities of the paint itself and the images that I have managed to achieve. This, for me, involves thoughts about what the most basic components of matter itself really are, and how can they be described. For me, the painting is about order, chaos, gravity, speed, time and light. These are the building blocks of the ephemeral world in which we dwell.

What inspired your piece?

'Booster' is an ongoing series of works on paper and canvas that was directly inspired by my investigation into the nature of my existence and the nature of appearances, that is, reality as it is described. I am trying to look behind the veil of reality.

What exactly do you mean by this?

To see what existed before the big bang and how all things came into being. I suppose it has to do with seeing God.

What is your greatest artistic influence, and why?

The first paintings I ever saw were by the great Japanese artist Utamaro. I was 8 years old. I have never forgotten that experience. There is a beautiful poetry in his compositions. I was left looking at images of a culture that I had no idea existed. This was a magical world for me and it shook me. It was a completely new culture after traveling from Kingston, Jamaica, to Sacramento, California.

What do you think of the Jamaican art scene?

It is too closed and needs to expand as the Cuban art scene has done. Cuba has fewer resources than Jamaica. I find it astonishing how provincial Jamaica is, considering the freedoms that our people have.

What has been your greatest moment of artistic achievement?

Producing and exhibition of eight works on linen six feet by eight feet each in two weeks in Beijing, China, this past May. The works became the largest Booster paintings to date and were reviewed by Ding Ning of Peking University in the New York Art Magazine. The final configuration of the works ended up being 16' x 12'. Similar works will be considered for the Beijing Olympics Arts Exhibition in 2008, which will be the largest exhibition in China of western paintings to date.

What are your favourite materials?

Carbon, this material makes up all that we know in the world. It is star matter: stars are composed of carbon and so are our human bodies.

What is your favourite work of Jamaican art?

I do not have a favourite work of Jamaican art but I do consider Milton George to be one of the greatest artists of his generation. I have not had the privilege of meeting him but, hopefully, I will someday. I like his brilliant and imaginative mind and how he conjures his magical worlds into existence. He is not an imitator, he is a creator.

Where is your favourite place in Jamaica?

My favourite place in Jamaica is the entire island. It is one great piece of energy that does not exist anyplace else on earth.

Where do you see your work in five years (or less)?

A one-man show at the National Gallery of Jamaica! This would certainly open up the conversation about what painting can be, and how one can begin the process of dealing with the abstract nature of all art.

Jamaica Biennial 2006 runs through March 12, 2007. Please call the National Gallery at 922 1561 for more details or email us at natgalja@cwjamaica.com.