WITH NATURAL ROCK FORMATIONS as the guide for his painted sculptures, Chris Chandler may be on to something big.
Chandler, who started dabbling in the arts 25 years ago, is responsible for the Parris Hill, St Joseph sculpture and is working on a similar one at his residence at Friendly Hall, St Thomas.
The project, which he has called Saga Gully, is just that – an adventure which began many years ago.
Chandler, who spoke fondly of his painted sculptures, said they had a special element that murals did not have.
He is especially proud of Parris Hill, saying it had no rival for a natural rock formation of that scale. In addition, there weren’t a lot of painted sculptures locally, regionally or internationally, he said.
Therefore, he wants Barbados to pay more attention to the very interesting story carved into the rock there.
A similar story is being formed in Saga Gully. Chandler is using the gully on his family property to create an attraction where children, locals and tourists alike can visit and see how the natural environment can become a beautiful work of art.
He said the finished product would have a large painted sculpture, painted trees, a bridge going over the spring and seating. The project began over 20 years when Chandler started clearing the gully by hand, but he took a break because he resided overseas for several years. So far the sculpture has been plastered with the help of a Government initiative but Chandler said he was awaiting sponsorship to complete it.
The main feature is comprised of several pieces, including a lion, a serpent which runs through the entire sculpture, an umpire’s finger, pulpit, the face of a man, the whisper and 13 steps. The lion and the serpent symbolise good and evil and situated in the middle is the pulpit. However, Chandler said the piece was ultimately interpretive.
Once complete, Saga Gully will be available for children’s tours. He plans to incorporate an essay competition for children to develop their stories of how they interpret the art. “I want to see what story they can get out of this.”
There is a spring running through the gully which, during the rainy season, turns it into a raging river, he said. One of 11 water tunnels which feed into the local water supply system is also on the property and that too will be incorporated into the exhibit because of its educational value. “The water tunnel channels flood water from The City and replenishes the aquifer in the Belle Station.”
Chandler, who started his art using recycled foam, wood, glass, metal, card and marble, is self-taught.
“Art was always in my blood, and being in the printing industry where I was trained, I would see people throwing things away and I was like, ‘Hey, I can use this’. I do not like to waste things even as a little child. People would be going to the dump to throw away things and Chris walking ’bout picking up things,” he said.
He was recently commissioned to do an honour wall for the Maria Holder Diabetes Centre for the Caribbean. It takes the form of a tree coming out of the ground and bears the names of the centre’s sponsors.
Chandler has also held exhibitions over the years. One of his prized works is, of course, the Parris Hill sculpture which was completed 15 years ago.
He said the project was started by the people in the community and he did the sculpting and painting. However, he said even though it had been around for a while, many people had not really “seen it” or taken the time to “feel its energy”.
It is comprised of six individual sculptures, all with a name and a story. The lion and the mouse represent confrontation, a continuation of Aesop’s Fables, “which has a lesson in there for the people of the country in that you are never too small to help and make an impact and no matter how big, you need help from others. It also is a story of kindness and forgiveness”.
Other aspects are a bull, Aquarius and a giraffe. There is also the procession which has 15 life-sized animals playing a game of cricket based on The Tradewinds’ song Cricket In The Jungle. The final piece is the procession which is incomplete.
Chandler said rather than driving slowly by, people should park and get out and explore the intricacies of the work at Parris Hill.
He is also looking to develop works of art in other communities, with the help of Government.
“It is about communities and what you can do with waste areas to enhance them,”he said. “Communities could take on similar projects; it does not have to be a gully but can be an open space.”