Article about the exhibition

Manuela Dack, a young Caymanian artist is starting out with her first solo show here in Cayman. Entitled ‘Hard Water’ the show promises to be thought provoking and a modern look at Caribbean art.
Inspiration for the exhibition comes from her time growing up here, and yet the style of her work would not look out of place in a city such as London, where she currently studies Fashion Design.
‘I think people often have trouble with the fashion art divide, but for me they are very similar. I love to work in any creative medium’, said the artist.
‘I have worked with both artists and designers in the past (including Local artist Bendal Hydes and London based designer Hussein Chalayan, who is famous for breaching the gap between art and fashion) and found that there is not such a big difference. For me what makes the difference between good art and bad art is the same in fashion. It is important to have concepts and intelligence behind the work. That is what makes any work, be it art or fashion based, interesting and inspiring. Even if the reaction is negative the work should have something to say and get people thinking.’
And her upcoming exhibition is no exception. ‘Water is one of the few elements with the power to give life and take it away and the environment in Cayman highlights these contrasts in nature, from the way the weather turns, to the haunting calm of the sea’, said the artist. She went on to explain how as a fashion designer the human form is her main source of inspiration and how she has used this in the exhibition to express her ideas. The exhibition features a range of mediums from large-scale drawings to a hanging glass instillation and offers a fascinating take on conventional art forms.
‘I always try to push the materials the their limit. Why does a painting have to be 2D, why shouldn’t you be able to walk around it and look through it?’
The use of glass in her work also lends itself perfectly to the subject of water and the name of the exhibition, ‘Hard Water’, will make sense to anyone who views it.
The show opens on Thursday the 18th of December at Caymana Bay with a cocktail reception, by invitation only, and runs until the 20th of December.
For more information and invitations to the reception, contact the artist at: mannidack@hotmail.com.