GRENADA ART by Eric M Johnn ...


	Welcome / Biography / Art Gallery / Political Art / Portraits / Contact Page

Despite its natural beauty, Grenada has experienced turbulent political upheavals in the past. Since the coming of Europeans, the Indians who lived there was forced into war to defend their island. It took the Europeans many years before they finally eliminated the Caribs and Arawaks from Grenada.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26 / 27 / 28 / 29 / 30 / 31 / 32 / 33 / 34 / 35 / 36 / 37 / 38 / 39 / 40 / 41 / 42 / 43 / 44 / 45 / 46 / 47 / 48 / 49 / 50 / 51

"The Leaping Caribs"
by Eric Johnn (oil on canvas ... 47x68) 1999.

This painting attempts to recapture quite an infamous story involving Grenada's indigenous Caribs and French settlers. The episode unfolded in the year 1651. For decades, European invaders had tried unsuccessfully to seize Grenada from the Caribs and the Arawaks. The fight for the island continued between the French and Caribs. Loses on both sides were heavy. But the French had the upper hand because of superior fire-power. However, the remaining Caribs were not going down begging on their knees. They preferred risk death by jumping in the sea rather than surrender. Because of their courage, the Caribs are today revered in Grenada and the rest of the Caribbean.

(Available in print/ original US$1,269 )

French and British colonialists fought for ownership until the British conquered and won in the end. The travails of the island did not end there. Thousands of Africans were shipped to work on tobacco, sugarcane and coffee plantations for European merchants. The island prospered, but very little of the wealth stayed in Grenada. The island went through dozens of social and political unrest since and during slavery up until 1983 when thousands of US-military troops intervened to squash a military junta that assassinated several ministers in the ruling government at the time. These days, Grenada is enjoying stability and with the tourism industry booming and nutmeg price at a comfortable rate, there's no reason why the Spice Isle of the West cannot even be spicier than ever.