HARTFORD, Conn. --- The Institute for Community Research will host the opening of Mas: Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community, on August 25, 2011 from 5 to 7 PM at the ICR Gallery, 2 Hartford Square West, 146 Wyllys St., in Hartford. The exhibit will feature colorful and imaginative costumes (Mas) such as those worn in Trinidad-style Carnivals around the world, including Hartford.
The event will also mark the graduation of 15 young women who have been learning how to make and wear the costumes under the direction of master costume maker Tynsley Charles and experienced assistants Grace Wright and Keimei “Q” Delpeche, and volunteer section leader Cassie Harper. Each teen has designed and built a complete costume, including headpiece, arm and foot bands, girdles, collars, backpacks, and all frames and attachments needed for wearing the elaborate structures. The teens have been trained in “displaying” their costumes in a parade by project artistic director Harold Springer. They have formed a Carnival “Band” called the Exotic Ones, with three sections of masqueraders in different color schemes. They will be performing with their costumes in the Taste of the Caribbean Festival at the Riverfront on August 6, and in the West Indian Parade on August 13.
The exhibit will include some of these costumes displayed in the gallery and the teens “masquerading” their costumes in person, accompanied by the Hartford Steel Symphony led by master steel pan maker and player Kelvin Griffith. All the participants in the summer costume-making program will receive certificates for successfully completing their training. The costumes will be on exhibit until October 17, 2011.
The project is a collaboration of the Institute’s Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CHAP) and the Connecticut International Cultural Carnival Association (CICCA), whose director Linford “Junior” Miller has organized costume production and display for several national and international carnivals.
According to Project Co-Director Junior Miller, “This summer training program highlights our West Indian traditions, and serves Hartford’s teens by teaching them important cultural heritage. Carnival is very important to our Caribbean community, and the teens now have design and creation skills that they can use in other areas. The community will now have exciting costumes on display at local festivals and parades, and in ICR’s gallery.”
The project is supported by a City of Hartford Jobs Grant for 2011, the Hartford City Council, and the Greater Hartford Arts Council through contributors to its United Arts Campaign and the United Way Community Campaign. CHAP’s participation is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, and the Institute for Community Research.
The Institute for Community Research is an independent, nonprofit organization that conducts applied research and community enhancement programs to promote equal access to health, education, and cultural resources. Its Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program encourages and promotes traditional artists and their communities through an active process of documentation, technical assistance, and public presentations to bring their work and the history of their communities to new audiences. Support comes from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, and the Greater Hartford Arts Council as well as foundations. For more information about ICR please visit our websites at www.incommunityresearch.org and www.ctheritagearts.org
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Photo caption: Alesha Chu Foo (right) and Shyanne Valentine (left) displaying CICCA Carnival costumes at the Taste of the Caribbean in 2009. Photo: Lynne Williamson/ICR |
