Young Rupununi artists awarded for their talent

L-R Bevan Allicock and Ransford Simon 

By Shaquawn Gill

Two young, indigenous artists were recently recognized and awarded for their outstanding and extensive work by the Mayor of Georgetown, Ubraj Narine.

Bevan Allicock, 19, of Surama Village, Rupununi, was one of two young artists to receive the Young Professional Artist Award from the Mayor of Georgetown in recently.

In an interview with this publication, Allicock pointed to his passion for the arts which he said has been an intrinsic feature in his life.

“I’ve been into the arts for as long as I could remember, but I actually started painting when I was in high school and continued ever since,” Allicock recalled.

The 19-year-old artist stated that he tries as much as possible to use his paintings to tell the stories of those that choose not to tell their stories themselves.

A final year student at the ER Burrowes School of Arts, Allicock explained that his only major challenge due to the pandemic is his inability to graduate.

“I was supposed to graduate last year, but due to the pandemic was postponed…so now I’m just awaiting the word,” Allicock mentioned.

When asked how he plans to use his art to bridge the gap in relation to the various social issues that plague our country, Allicock expressed his opinion that art may just be the best way to go about bridging that gap.

“Art has always been a form of visual communication where you can communicate with society and have more of an impact when you want to get a message across without saying a word,” Allicock said.

One of the many paintings in Allicock’s art collection, entitled ‘Tango Dancer’

Allicock’s comments come just after there was a social media uproar and an array of infuriated comments after another artist posted a painting that was deemed to be racially insensitive and depicts the real intention of his art.

Meanwhile, 21-year-old Ransford Simon was also awarded by the Mayor for his work.

Although only starting his paintings in 2015, Simon explained that overtime his love for paintings and the art grew and he continued to practice and evolve his craft.

Simon, who hails from Rewa Village, North Rupununi, mentioned to this publication that his paintings are usually filled with nature themes as his inspirations and motives for his paintings are spoken through nature.

“My paintings are mostly inspired by nature [because] I want to show the…beauty of nature and [also] spread awareness about the protection of the Rainforest,” he said.

Simon graduated from the E.R Burrowes School of Art in 2017.

When asked about the award he also received from His Worship the Mayor Ubraj Narine, Simon expressed his sincerest gratitude for the token and noted that it was a major piece of encouragement for him.

“The award was quite an achievement [for me]. It gave me a big boost in confidence and reminded me that I need to keep working hard,” he detailed.

One of Ransford’s paintings

Simon explained that going forward, he plans to take his paintings to the next level to bring widespread awareness. “I plan to use my talent to paint murals in public places so that I can raise awareness for various social issues,” he noted.

The two young artists wish to encourage all other artists pursuing their craft to continue to fall in love with what they do everyday, and to have fun while doing it.