#galleryyuhself/culture

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Galleryyuhself - Mas in yoh Mahhhhsssss

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Fanaticus, the Latin origin of “fan,” was used to describe female temple attendants driven into frenzy by devotion to the gods. This type of chaotic piousness, as a secular behavior, might be traced to the mid-1800s, a time when mass culture was on the rise.

By Jamie Lauren Keiles

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Galleryyuhself - DECLARING DIEGO MARTIN THE HOME OF CALYPSOMEDIA RELEASE

There are 300+ Trinidad-style Carnivals all over planet Earth. The two largest festivals in the western world are Trini-styled Carnivals- London’s Notting Hill, and Brooklyn’s Labour Day- which, at their height, had over 4 million people on the streets! Calypso has been the root and has profoundly influenced the trajectory of many forms of popular music from Afrobeat, Ska, Rock Steady, Dancehall, and Reggaeton, to Afro Beats and EDM, etc. The first platinum album in the world was Calypso by Harry Belafonte beating out Rock N Roll and Elvis. After Jazz and before Pop, America was contemplating making Calypso its next popular music… Millions of people across the world move to the pulse of its variant forms- Soca, Chutney, and more…

All of this impact was born in a cave at the top of Diego Martin out of the voice of one genius enslaved African called Gros Jean… On Thursday 9th February at 10:30am a group of citizens, historians, Calypsonians and estates of Calypsonians made the historic declaration that ‘’Diego Martin is the Home of Calypso’ at the Azure Room in IMAX, Starting with the phrase, ‘’As this is the ‘Mother of All Carnivals’ we would like to make the ‘Mother of all Carnival Declarations’’ the Artists’ Coalition of Trinidad and Tobago (ACTT) in collaboration with  series of Diego Martin citizen organisations, and the estates of some of T&T’s most illustrious Kings of Calypso are pursuing an initiative to have Diego Martin branded ‘the Home of Calypso’. 

The fascinating claim emerges out of a strange confluence of cultural phenomena observed by ACTT president Rubadiri Victor whilst doing historical research for a Cultural Mapping exercise for Diego Martin as part of a Commonwealth Foundation grant project in 2016.The reasons behind the claim are the following: The first 6 or so Calypsonians ever in the historical record came from slave plantations in Diego.

Records have shown that during the late 1700s, the first Calypsonians originated from the Begorrat Slave Plantation in Covigne Hill, Diego Martin- with the first Calypsonian on record being the enslaved African “Gros Jean” a singer of extraordinary talent. The tomb of Gros Jean- the first Calypsonian- is located at the corner of Covigne Road and Richardson Street in Diego Martin- at what was once the Bergorrat family cemetery. It is said that on burial, Gros Jean’s body was wrapped in flaming red cloth, with a gold crucifix over his forehead, and his mouth filled with rum…Following Gros Jean were other calypsonians like “So-So”, “Papa Couchon”, “Possum”, and “Hannibal the Mulatto”.

The site where Calypso was 'born' were the Covigne caves beneath Begorrat's great house. The network of caves are said to extend all the way to the West coast beach of Macqueripe where Begorrat was rumoured to have run contraband and illegal slaves through. That Calypso was born in a cave is a fascinating Creation Myth. Victor and fellow ACTT board member and Calypso archivist Shawn Randoo made the hike to discover the caves in 2017 and filmed the entire adventure. It will be released as a short film later this year…

Apart from this, many of the modern Calypso Kings also came to reside in Diego- Sparrow, Kitchener, Rudder, Chalkdust- as well as other geniuses of the form- Funny, Brigo, Brother Superior, etc. The first ever Calypso King (1939)- the Growling Tiger- - was born there. Calypso Queen Denise Plummer was also a resident, alongside “Marcia Miranda”, the duo “Regeneration Now” and brass bandleader “Roy Cape”. One of the greatest writers of the Calypso- the late “Winsford Devine” also called Diego home, alongside contemporary voices like Kerwyn Du Bois and Maximus Dan who were born there.

Add to this legendary Pan arranger Clive Bradley and Drew Gonzalves- lead singer/songwriter of the Calypso-based Juno winning group Kobo Town (the Juno is the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy). It is a staggering amount of Legacy names!...To crown it all the largest archive of T&T music and Calypso exists in Diego- the Shawn Randoo collection. This is important as the two largest collections of T&T and Calypso music are both held outside of T&T. The first is located in Alaska with historian and ex-judge Ray Funk.

The second is located in Canada- recently sold by Trini-born Toronto native George Maharaj.

These facts inspired Rubadiri and ACTT to crown the phenomena via a proposal that was supported by the Diego Martin Regional Corporation through then Chairman Hong and the village of Covigne in 2017. Its objectives were, and still are, the activation of a Heritage Hub project and the branding of Diego Martin as the Home of Calypso, on the planet.

The project was advancing on many fronts- but COVID then derailed it…As this is the "Mother of All Carnivals" it was decided to reanimate the project, reassemble the forces, and relaunch the project with a media conference to LAUNCH THE IDEA of DIEGO MARTIN- THE HOME OF CALYPSO.

At the media conference, a timeline was given to realize the first phase of projects in time for Carnival 2024. To facilitate the project a committee made up of the stakeholders has been put together and is expanding. There are reps from the estates of the Kings- Kitch, Sparrow, Rudder, etc; Shawn Randoo the kaiso historian; representatives of the Covigne people; the Diego Martin Carnival Committee; Akins Vidale- a professor from the Cipriani Labour College (born in Covigne); other Diego non-Calypso VIPs; and members of the Artists’ Coalition of Trinidad & Tobago.

At the Heart of all this, of course, is the Power and majesty of the thing called Calypso, which has changed the world and lives profoundly. The aim of the Heritage Hub project is to create entrepreneurial hubs based around profound Heritage Sites.

These sites are compelling destinations which should house multi-media Museums. Around this you then add the agricultural produce of the region, its culinary skills, its cultural practitioners and talents, its artisans, its tech, and its entrepreneurs- small, medium, and large.

ACTT believes that the ‘Diego Martin- Home of Calypso’ project will be a prototype of such citizen-led initiatives to transform declining communities.The committee is actively looking for private and public sector partners for the project which visualises a one year timeline for the first phase of the re-branding.

The projects include:

1.      Designating the Begorrat Caves a National Heritage Site and creating an international hiking trail destination with multiple lookout points. A project for the clearing and mapping of the caves at the top of Covigne exists and awaits partners.

2.      Another project involves creating heritage markers for the front of all the Homes of the Kings and other calypso sites in Diego- like Sparrow’s Hideaway, Kitchener’s Rain-O-Rama;  the grave of Gros Jean, the homes of Superior, etc.

3.      A low hanging fruit project involves the creation of murals all over the soon-to.be-borough with a specific one prescribed for Covigne itself.

4.      Another project involves a possible creation of a Diego Martin and Calypso multi-media museum out of the current Water Wheel Heritage Site and the designing of an outdoor stage at the Water Wheel, itself which is a natural ampitheatre.

5.      Holding all the multiple Heritage locations together will be the creation of a tourist guide map of the area by the committee.

6.      Finally the branding exclamation mark would be the creation of a billboard at the entrance of Diego proclaiming ‘‘Welcome to DIEGO MARTIN- THE HOME OF CALYPSO!’’

7.      A Diego Martin Calypso Heritage Festival would be the final goal, possibly twinned with the historic Pigeon Peas Festival run by members of the Covigne community.Its aim is to eventually attract up to 100,000 unique domestic and overseas visitors to Diego Martin annually in the first instance- as well as other forms of tourism.

This project could change the fate and face of Diego for the better and release multi-million dollar entrepreneurial multipliers in the community. It could assist in the rehabilitation of collapsing hillside communities and delinquent boys. The project also envisages the establishment of vinyl record shops, a record-pressing plant, and internet radio stations as outcomes. Ultimately the ‘Home of Calypso’ project would contribute toward generating and circulating millions of dollars in foreign exchange within Diego Martin, surrounding communities, and Trinidad & Tobago as a whole. 

There is a Facebook page you can join to keep abreast and to contribute: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090180610072 or call 1’868-797-‘0949 if interested.

Members of the committee: Pedro Mulrain ‘The Scientist’ ACTT board member and vinyl record activist: Errol Joseph representing the Covigne community and chairman of the Diego Martin Pigeon Peas Festival: Mr Shurland Hartley, head of the West Penn Sports and Cultural Organisation: and Rubadiri Victor, president of ACTT. Missing members of the Diego Martin Carnival Committee.

Video greetings by: David Michael Rudder; Karen Francisco from the Sparrow family: and Yvonne Bobb Smith, librarian and advocate for the creation of the T&T Museum of Music. Blessing came from the family of Kitchener- widow Valerie Roberts and daughter Quweina Roberts, and from Hollis Liverpool- the Chalkdust.

THE ENTIRE FIRST PHASE OF THE PROJECT IS DEDICATED TO THE LATE PROFESSOR GORDON ROHLEHR....

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Happy Carnival 2023!

GALLERYYUHSELF - T&T Rocks gets us into the Carnival spirit.

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Galleryyuhself - Beat PAN! World Steelpan festival 2024! Check the poster design peeps.

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Galleryyuhself - Let's go Tobago.

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The courses cover topics such as marble, stone conservation and restoration, mural painting, the preservation of heritage archives, the design of small businesses in heritage tourism destinations and the management of historic centres.

The Caribbean Cultural Training Hub is pleased to announce its sixth call for applications for creative specialization courses in Havana, Cuba. As part of the UNESCO programme Transcultura: Integrating Cuba, the Caribbean and the European Union through Culture and Creativity, funded by the European Union, the programme will offer 70 scholarships to young people from the Caribbean to participate in these courses.

Stone conservation and restoration (7 to 18 October 2024), Workshop School of Havana ‘Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos’

Marble, terrazzo and marble mosaic work (7 October to 1 November 2024), Workshop School of Havana ‘Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos’

Brick Vaults (7 October to 1 November 2024), Workshop School of Havana ‘Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos’

Walls that speak: conservation and restoration of mural painting (7 to 18 October 2024), Santa Clara College for Training in the Arts and Restoration Trades of Cuba and the Caribbean

Preservation of Heritage Archives (14 to 25 October 2024), Santa Clara College for Training in the Arts and Restoration Trades of Cuba and the Caribbean

The design of small businesses in heritage tourism destinations (14 to 25 October 2024), University College of San Gerónimo de La Habana

Introduction to the management of historic centres (14 to 25 October 2024), University College of San Gerónimo de La Habana

This call is aimed at young cultural professionals between 18 and 35 years of age, with nationality and permanent residency in any of the following 17 Caribbean countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

Applications must be submitted by Friday 30 August 2024 at 23:59 hours (GMT-5) via this online form.

https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx...

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Galleryyuhself - Happy AFRICAN Emancipation Day 2024.

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Galleryyuhself - Happy Indian Arrival Day 2024.

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Galleryyuhself - Don't we love Trinidad and Tobago! Two religious holidays back to back peacefully celebrated.

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Galleryyuhself - Moving with full force in June 2024.

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Galleryyuhself _ KFC keps taking the 'jab, jab."

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Galleryyuhself - Eid 2023 -  Mubarak Eid greetings.

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Galleryyuhself - A rousing tribute to the late (Auntie) Hazel Ward Redman by her fellow colleague Neil Giuseppi.

Image of Morris Connor Pianist and co host to Auntie Hazel Ward at (far left)

HAZEL WARD-REDMAN

This morning I am presenting a biographical sketch of one of the greatest women I have ever known.Apart from my mother, Undine Giuseppi, I cannot think of any professional woman who has had a greater impact on my life than Hazel Ward-Redman.Hazel was the consummate professional. She insisted on excellence in everything that she did.

From the time I joined television I watched her every move, intent on learning whatever I could from this very talented woman.Hazel was one of the pioneers of ttt, (Trinidad and Tobago Television) which she joined in 1962 prior to the launch of the station. She had previously worked at Radio Trinidad.She was born Hazel Avion Wilson on July 20th, 1935, at Number 8 Fonrose Street in San Fernando. She was the daughter of Austin and Valentine Wilson and was one of nine children.Hazel’s primary education was at the Coffee Street E.C. School. She then attended St. Joseph’s Convent in San Fernando.

On graduating she taught at the Convent for a short while before venturing into the field of broadcasting. She became a Radio Announcer with the Voice of Rediffusion. From there she moved to Radio Trinidad where she produced and presented a number of programmes, mainly dealing with women’s issues.But being a radio presenter was not to be the eventual  role she was destined to play.And so it was that when a new dawn was emerging over an independent Trinidad and Tobago in 1962, Hazel Ward-Redman was one of a team of pioneers who braved the uncharted waters to launch ttt, an institution which over the next 43 years was to play an integral part in the development of Trinidad and Tobago and which was instrumental in moulding the lives of each and every one of us.Aunty Hazel, as she became known to all, was an almost larger-than-life figure on our television screens for most of those years.Her cultural programmes like “12 and Under” and “Teen Talent” and her magazine programmes like “Mainly for Women,” “Centre Stage” and “Not for Women Only” set standards of excellence that television producers and presenters today would do well to emulate.Strange though it may seem, few people remember that she was the first Weather Anchor at ttt, a position she handled with the same flair and professionalism she did on all her other television programmes.

Image of Morris Connor Pianist and co host to Auntie Hazel Ward at (far left) a young entertainer on her Twelve and Under Show, Auntie Hazel herself and her co-host Richard Pierre.

But Aunty Hazel was more than merely a Producer and Presenter of Television programmes.She was a teacher and mentor to thousands of young people whose lives she influenced positively. She was a guiding light when all around seemed dark and hopeless. While at ttt she got the opportunity to be trained at the B.B.C. in London.The story of how that came about is quite interesting and speaks volumes to the high regard in which she was held at all levels of the society.She related to her sisters that one day, while at work, she received a telephone call from the-then Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. Eric Eustace Williams.“What can I do to help you?” was the question posed by Dr. Williams.Hazel immediately thought that this was a great opportunity for her to get the much-needed funding and support that was required for the children’s programmes she was producing at the time and she began to outline the areas that wanted the greatest assistance.“That’s not what I meant,” interjected Dr. Williams in his usual abrupt manner. “What can I do to help you personally?”Hazel could not believe what she was hearing and immediately told the Prime Minister that her greatest dream had always been to receive professional training at the B.B.C. in London.

Shortly afterwards, her dream came to pass, thanks to Dr. Williams.She received many awards during her lifetime.These include the Hummingbird Medal (Gold) in the sphere of Culture…. the National Women’s Action Committee Award for outstanding contribution to the development of Women in the Arts… the San Fernando City Council Award for her contributions in Arts and Entertainment… the Trinidad and Tobago Publishers and Broadcasters Association Award for Media Excellence… and the Vanguard Award from the National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago.Hazel had a deep religious faith and whenever in Port of Spain she ensured that she attended service at the All Saints Anglican Church.Her love of Almighty God was uncompromising.Although she had none of her own, Hazel loved children and devoted her life to creating opportunities for the nation’s youth.She was also very family-oriented and took great pain to ensure that her brothers and sisters remained a close-knit unit at all times. She also took great interest in her nieces and nephews, particularly those who were involved in the arts.She was a loving and committed wife. In the last few years until his death in 2012 she devoted herself to caring for her husband, Archie, during his illness.

She was always impeccably dressed in public, as most of us knew.What we perhaps did not know was that this emphasis on dressing properly extended even to the confines of her own home.Her niece, Gillian, who lived with her for some time, recalls that she was always amazed that whenever Hazel came home, she would never put on a T Shirt and shorts as most of us are wont to do but instead would change into some elegant wear, a Meiling creation perhaps.This prompted Gillian to remark one day in true local parlance, “But like this woman ent have no home clothes or what.”But this was the woman, Hazel Ward-Redman. She maintained the highest standards in all aspects of her life at all times.I knew Hazel even before I joined ttt in 1971.My parents were very friendly with Wilton Hercules and his wife, Ena. Ena was Hazel’s elder sister. Uncle Will was my Godfather while Aunt Ena was my sister’s Godmother. The two families were very close. When I joined ttt, she always took a keen interest in my career and would always be willing to provide advice and assistance whenever she could. She was also never afraid to pull me up when she thought I had done something wrong.I remember in 1979, after the coup in Grenada, I had succeeded in obtaining an exclusive telephone interview with Maurice Bishop, one of the leaders of the insurrection.The day after the interview was aired, Hazel stormed into the Newsroom and although she congratulated me on scooping the other media and conducting what she thought was a very good interview, she chided me for calling him Maurice and not Mr. Bishop.“You must understand,” she said, “that although you know him personally, you must realise that he is now the Head of the Government of Grenada and must be treated with the dignity and respect that that office demands.”I have never forgotten that lesson.                                                                                                                           

That was the type of person that Hazel Ward-Redman always was. She gave everyone the respect that they deserved.And she handled everything she did with class. I remember at a function at which both she and I were present, a slightly intoxicated individual attempted to make a pass at her. I was actually sorry for the poor individual when she had finished with him. And she never raised her voice; she never used any language of which she would be ashamed. It was a truly classy put down. I always admired that about her.After I left ttt she always followed my career with interest and many were the conversations we had on the telephone. In 2014 during her illness I felt it important that she should meet Carol with whom I was about to get married.We visited her at her home in San Fernando and spent an hour or so with her.As we were leaving she gave me a wink and a nod of approval.That was the positive note on which my visit ended. It was the last time I saw her alive.On Monday 27th October, 2014, at 7.15 a.m., Hazel Ward-Redman, Teacher, Television Producer and Presenter extra-ordinaire, Educator, Guide, Mentor, Patriot and Wife breathed her last on this earth and went to sit alongside her late husband, Archie, forever at the feet of the Lord.I shall always remember being tremendously honoured when I was asked by her niece, Gillian, to deliver a tribute at her funeral, an invitation I accepted without hesitation.To the end of my days, I shall always be proud to have had this champion of a woman as a friend and professional associate.

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Galleryyuhself - A history of BATA and its establishment in Trinidad and Tobago.

From the Facebook page of Dominic Kalipersad - The Bata Company began exporting shoes to Trinidad in 1930 and two years later, it established shops on the island.Bata continued selling its shoes to Trinidad customers even after the Second World War, and the company ceased operations on the island in 1993.It sneakers, called Bata Bullets, were a hot seller for schoolchildren, probably due to the economical price, but they were not considered cool by the fashion-conscious.

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GALLERYYUHSELF - A good dose of history.

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Galleryyuhself - Preach the gospel