NINE artists from western Jamaica will be among a group of 12 whose work will be on exhibit in Florida next month as part of that US city’s Black History Month celebrations.

The show, which is billed ‘Jamaican Heritage: Celebrations of Hope’, is already being advertised on the Broward County Library’s website.

According to a recent release issued by the library, the February 1 to 28 offering will include author presentations, exhibits, discussions, workshops and displays that celebrate and explore Jamaican heritage.

In particular, this Florida showing is expected to give under-exposed local artists a chance to display their work throughout Broward County for the entire month.

“There is a 28-day celebration which has now become a tribute to Jamaica’s art, culture and heritage in general,” said participating artist and gallery owner, Elgo Lewis.

Lewis, a self-proclaimed protector of the unrecognised artist, said he is determined to give some of those who are relatively unknown a chance to be in the spotlight.

“This is a way of exposing Jamaican art to an international audience, because normally it’s only the big shot (artists) that get these kind of opportunities,” he argued. “You find that they push away the ones that may not be ‘paper qualified’, but they are just as good artists. So this is an opportunity for artists without any egos or stature to showcase their work,” he said.

“For example, Joe James who is going to be honoured, he is an artist from the west. He’s older than I am, and unless we don’t do something we’ll forget about him. Garth Sanguinetti is a master jeweller, and even though he’s of Edna Manley school, he’s very much on the outside,” Lewis explained. “Karl Jerry Craig hails from the west and he’s a former head of the Edna Manley school. Marie Woolcock is a teacher here at this time and Suzette Burrows studied art in Italy.”

He added: “There will also be work done by Amoreth Tucker, an ordinary black woman who studied at the Edna Manley school, but has received no recognition because her work is a little bit primitive. There is also Phillip Tomlinson, an artist that teaches at Herbert Morrison Technical High School. And Janet Eyles who does wonderful sculpture.

Other exhibitors will include Edmund Souza, Cleve Bowen and Andre Williams.

“I speak up for art and this is one such opportunity. Why is Picasso great, it’s because a group of white people get up and say he’s great,” Lewis charged. “So we must get up and shout and create our true heroes, not because they fight a rebellion or fight a war. We must recognise the people who make a silent contribution.”

An official opening reception has been planned for February 9, and the next day Professor Rex Nettleford will give a lecture on the aesthetics of Jamaican dance.

Local sponsors of the Florida show include Air Jamaica, Elgo’s Art Gallery, Island Grill and the Jamaica Information Service.