Published: 13th of September, 2023
Last updated: September 13, 2023 at 17:00 pmThis beautiful artwork along with the text explanation posted below was sent in by one of our fans, Guyanese Aaron Gangadeen.
My picturesque and cultural digital artwork was drawn with the theme “Amerindian Heritage Month” in mind.
The surrealistic centerpiece was creatively mounted onto a rocky waterfall cascade consisting of a grassy plain with an exuberant sunbeam. This dramatically propagates a blooming tree which grew a union between two primitively attired indigenous folks who respired life into some of the magnificent giants of the rainforest.
The featured animals are ( left to right ) the majestic jaguar, the giant river otter, the colorful Canje Pheasant, the vicious anaconda, the mighty harpy eagle, and the villainous-looking caiman. The surrealistic style generally was drawn as an epitome of the rich biodiversity of Guyana with the indigenous people linking them. Clutched behind the centerpiece is a Taino/Arawak writing which reads “Happy life.”
The surrounding backgrounds depict the many other splendiferous impacts of the Amerindians on the Guyanese culture. I couldn’t draw all, so whatever minute details were drawn covered a large contribution. Commencing on the mysterious beings on the upper opposite sides, these represent the wata mama (left) and kanaima (right). Some of the most fascinating folklore of this culture. The above primitive writing reads “Amerindian.”
The Amerindians named many places and waterways. Drawn on the lower opposite sides illustrate a few of them, namely the Kaieteur Falls (right), Mt. Roraima (left) and the Pakaraima Mountains (left). The silhouette (right), who is seated on the protruding rock playing the flute, symbolizes their music and her place of harmony shows their correspondence to the marvelous nature. Hence, Amerindians, from time immemorial, have lived and blended within the environment and preserved the rainforest.
Steeping down through the luscious savannah in the lower left is the Umana Yana which reminds us of the Amerindian Heritage and their unique architecture. The official opening of Amerindian Heritage Month celebrations takes place at the Umana Yana on the first day of September. Diving lower in the rushing stream in the bottom left and right demonstrates some of their distinguished art, crafts, and dishes (the famous finger-licking pepperpot and cassava bread which are national dishes of Guyana).
In conclusion, all these elaborate ideas and details composed into this artwork give it its title, “The Ingenious Indigenous.”
