Town Island, a pre-show interview with artist Benaiah Matheson
Written by: Dr Janine Sykes
Artist Beniah Matheson kindly gave us this pre-show interview in July while his art project Town Island was (and remains) exhibited at the Venice Biennale, until 24 Nov 2024.
Huddersfield Art Gallery has partnered with both the Yorkshire Contemporary and The Cultures of Programme (University of Huddersfield) to bring the display to Huddersfield in January 2025.
Town Island is a multidisciplinary project by Huddersfield-based visual artist Benaiah Matheson, presented at the Grenada Pavilion. The project explores the cultural and historical connections between Carriacou, Grenada, and Huddersfield, UK, drawing on the 1950s migration of Carriacou people to Britain. As the Cultures of Programme theme this year is Creative Health, we asked Matheson how the collaborative processes of making the works in Huddersfield (the Town) and Grenada (the Island) benefited the health of the participants. Questions also explore further connections with health, and the artwork's themes of identity and belonging.
This pre-show interview provides a unique opportunity to explore the healing and place-based properties of the Town Island artworks, as they reveal insights into Huddersfield and Kayak (Carriacou People) identities through sensuous form. The interview will soon be available in print in the new Cultures of publication from January 2025.
Find out more about the Cultures of Creative Health Research Festival
Interview with Dr Janine Sykes, Curator (Visual Arts), Kirklees Museums and Galleries
Town Island (25 January-22 March 2025) Sovereign Design House, The University of Huddersfield Queensgate, Huddersfield HD1 3DH.
This is the Town Island interview transcript.
