SOME years ago, I bought a book that was the public publication of an artist’s work that was executed within the borders of Guyana. The title of the hardcover book is simply, Guyana by Alexis Rockman.

The artist executed the pieces during a six-week trip with friends in 1994, and the acknowledgements envelope all who participated in accommodating the project. But what the paintings capture is truly inspiring, and rooted in the armoury of the inspiration that went before. An extract from William Beebe’s Jungle Peace (1920) is an early welcoming piece to this book.

The paintings in this book escort us into the realms of the forested lands and creeks, capturing realms of Guyana we take for granted. These smaller worlds remain with their original inhabitants, from whom we have taken land to build our townships and villages. But its hunters and predators were here before, and still are, long before Homo erectus and modern humans emerged with our religions, assuming that the Edenic garden was an exclusive realm of humankind. This book of exceptional artistic renditions captures our other worlds.

These other realms of Guyana, which we ourselves refer to in cartoons, sketches, and folklore, have always lacked the research resources to develop into satisfying imagery, whether entertaining or informative.

Of course, this particular genre is not new, but it is novel in its natural portrait presentations of consistency on our platform in regards to the worlds of animals and insects, for many reasons, one of which is that our talents are used to assist our means of survival.

Though there may be wealthy citizens around, the complex question of aesthetics is quite another topic. Thus, the investment in research and development equipment is challenging; I can testify to that.

In creating the character and storyline of The Mighty Itanami, I dabbled with the idea of an old Kurupung that enveloped a mermaid. To have a camera kit that could shoot a mermaid actress underwater would have taken The Mighty Itanami beyond its pages. I called a colleague and asked him to enquire. Yes, the camera kit existed, but the cost returned me immediately to Dr. PH Martin’s inks and photoshop illustrations.
To wrap up, this is a book that artists should have in their library. There’s no telling where inspiration might take you.