In 1923, on the northeastern end of the Caribbean island of Trinidad, my Great Great Grandfather, Nabi George Ali acquired a 99-year lease with the State to develop 16 acres of land for agricultural purposes. He was building upon the foundation his ancestors laid when they came from India as indentured workers only a few decades before.
In a village named Oropouche, the St. Madeleine estate eventually produced an abundance of fruits including coconut, mango, orange, lime, banana, coffee, and cocoa (cacao) - an especially lucrative industry at the time. This fertile land provided sustenance, livelihood, and opportunity for many in the community and it was the main residence for the Ali family for over 50 years.
As a little girl I was captivated by the cocoa drying sheds that peaked from the clearing on the right; odd-shaped, rusted structures with an air of mystery about them. On the left were remnants of the old family wooden house which conjured imaginations of my father growing up here as a young lad. On many mornings the family would have overlooked a bountiful plantation decorated with balloons of vibrant, warm-hued cocoa, contemplating the opportunities it would provide for generations to come.
Now living in Canada with a family of my own, nurturing these vivid childhood memories have become integral to establishing my identity.
My work is a raw, naive, exploration of paper quilling. Paper provides me with a tactile outlet to engage in a unique textural and colour blending experience.