Body Talk

The impetus for this group exhibition was prompted by the increasing popularity of the photographic medium within the Cayman Islands, which had flourished within the community in the early years of the new millennium. Seeking to foreground and celebrate their creative contributions, the Gallery invited some 20 local amateur and professional photographers to explore representations of the human body and its compelling interest as a subject for artistic expression, adopting a focused thematic lens as a way of challenging and inspiring the exhibition’s artists.

Carrying strong symbolic resonance – an effect both intentionally and unintentionally conveyed by the participating photographers –Body Talk provided a platform for each artist to touch upon a wide range of issues, including those of personal identity, beliefs, culture, sexuality, gender, and political power. Accordingly, the exhibition showcased both the expressive capacity of this signature art form, and participants’ unique responses to the associated subject matter—ranging from metaphorical and documentary depictions of the body, to abstract, multicoloured and monochromatic treatments of the human form by artists such as Patrick Broderick, Carl Brown, and Lucy Best.

Body Talk was curated by Natalie Urquhart and was on view at the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands from 3 June – 31 July 2004.