Painting in a flash with Winston Alexander

By Gibron Rahim

SPEED painting is gaining popularity around the world. The technique has transformed painting into an event. Now, it has made its appearance in Guyana with Winston Alexander delighting audiences with his painting speed. Alexander combines painting technique and performance style to create engaging art pieces.

Originally from the village of Hararuni on the Soesdyke-Linden Highway, Alexander told The Buzz that art has been within him from a tender age. He related that while he was growing up people would remark that he had artistic talents. However, he also recalled that he would not pay heed to those comments. After he completed secondary school Alexander was faced with the dilemma of deciding his next step. “A friend of mine encouraged me to join the art school – [E.R.] Burrowes School of Art,” he said. Alexander went on major in Painting and minor in Graphics, graduating from the institution in 2009. He presently pursues art full-time, working on commission.

Alexander’s speed painting skills are completely self-taught. He related that after he had completed his education at Burrowes he spent a few years living in Barbados and exhibiting his work. As time went on Alexander found that his art began holding less interest for him. He explained that he was finding it difficult to muster the patience to sit and draw or paint for hours. It was around that time that he began looking at speed painting videos online. He was so impressed that he decided to try it for himself. He bought his materials and made his first attempt. The first result was less than stellar. “[The] first attempt was like a mess,” he laughingly admitted.

Determined to succeed
Wondering if speed painting was for him but deciding not to give up, Alexander did further research on speed painting. He noted that his research was fruitful and helped him as a speed painter. After his research, he decided to make another attempt. “It was much better,” he said. He was able to accomplish greater accuracy when it came to speed painting portraits. The transition from traditional painting to speed painting requires adjustment to a different mindset he noted. Alexander has found too that he also has to adjust when he returns to traditional painting that requires him to sit and paint.

New opportunity
Just as Alexander was developing his speed painting abilities, the E-Networks Spotlight talent competition came along. He became aware of the call for talented individuals to

audition to be contestants on the programme. The show he said gave him the opportunity to showcase his talent in speed painting. “Spotlight was a great, great experience,” he stated emphatically. He related that it was his first time dealing with cameras and with filming and editing for television. “It was really challenging but it did give me a boost in speed painting,” he said and added that he was really glad for the scope he was able to gain from his participation.

Painting to the beat
Movement and music are crucial to Alexander’s speed painting. One of his early realisations from his research was that speed painting is best accompanied by music and rhythm. “You have got to be active,” he related. “You just can’t stand there because you’re a performer now.” Capturing and maintaining the attention of the audience is a key part of speed painting Alexander explained. He himself demonstrated one way of doing so at the recently held Wine Art and Music: reWINEd, the fourth installment of the Rotaract Club of Georgetown Central’s Wine and Art Event. At that fundraising benefit for Haiti, he painted a portrait of Wyclef Jean upside down, only flipping it right-side up once he was finished to reveal the painting to the spellbound audience.

Thus far in his speed painting career, Alexander has utilised two techniques of speed painting – painting with brush strokes and using a sprinkle effect. The sprinkle effect, he explained is “where you apply paste and then you just throw the sprinkles and capture that image.” The paste ensures that the sprinkles only remain in the desired area to create an image. Alexander noted too that he is still experimenting with some more techniques.

Audience reception
Reflecting on a few weeks ago, Alexander recalled the positive reception he received from the audiences at Easter camps he put on shows for. He noted that speed painting is an art form that Guyanese are still largely unfamiliar with. For some of the audience members at the shows, it was their first time seeing speed painting. “They really appreciated it,” he said. “They encouraged me to go further in speed painting.” He has found that speed painting can be therapeutic as well. “Sometimes you’re off, you’re down and the music and the painting can really change those feelings,” he said.

Speed painting is not necessarily solely for professional painters or those with great artistic skill. Passion is essential, however. “You have got to have the love for art, that’s number one,” Alexander stated clearly. He called attention to the differences between traditional painting, where the artist usually remains in one spot, and speed painting where movement is a crucial part of the artist’s performance. Love of movement and music are essential.

Alexander pointed out that he gets caught up in the moment when he is speed painting. Most of the time, within the three or four minutes that he spends speed painting, Alexander ends up with paint all over. He has even caught himself throwing down his brush and painting with his hands.