Exhibition
This survey of works by artist Horacio Esteban, a key figure among the Native Sons artists collective, opened in NGCI’s Community Gallery in October 2017 and formed the basis for research and development that culminated in Esteban’s first full-scale solo exhibition at the National Gallery, Alchemy, in 2020. The collection of works assembled for Esteban’s more intimate 2017 solo presentation encapsulated the diverse range of media used by the artist, from reclaimed cedar wood to carved Caymanite. In both its materiality and subject matter, Horacio Esteban showcased the artist’s abiding interest in the natural environment, as well as inventive depictions of the unique flora and fauna of the Cayman Islands.
About the Artist
Horacio Esteban
b. 1963
Born in Cuba and raised in Cayman Brac, Horacio Esteban is a sculptor and jeweller known for his use of the local semi-precious stone Caymanite. A core member of the Native Sons artists collective, he was recognised by the Cayman National Cultural Foundation for Artistic Excellence in Sculpture (2002) and in 2017 received the Artistic Director’s Visionary Award. In 2004 Esteban was the recipient of the NGCI’s Artist Away Grant and in 2015, he was selected for residency in the inter-island artist lock-in project in Jersey, Channel Islands, produced by the Jersey Arts Trust in partnership with Jersey Heritage and Wild Works Theatre Company. NGCI exhibitions include Emergence (2005), Native Sons’ Fahive (2005), All Access (2015), Saltwater in their Veins (2017), a solo exhibition, Horacio Esteban (2017), Revive: Contemporary Caymanian Craft (2017), Cross Currents – 1st Cayman Islands Biennial (2019), Island of Women: Life at Home During our Maritime Years (2020), a solo exhibition, Alchemy (2020), and The People’s Collection: A 25-Year Cultural Legacy (2022).
