Suggestions for the Visual Arts competition

Dear Editor, It's rare for a sitting government minister to come to the forefront via the press and address matters of concerns by ordinary citizens. I must commend Minister Nicolette Henry on her recent appearance in the press on the subject of sport (‘Ministry of Education is spending billions on sports development’ Sunday Stabroek, September 25), and hopefully she will also address the public on the following cultural subject.

I humbly ask her to consider the following in relation to the Guyana Visual Arts/Photography Competition 2016 which the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport is totally responsible for in collaboration with the Burrowes School of Art. Earlier in the year, the press carried advertisements about the event and we are now closing in on the deadline for entries.

The last year of the competition was 2014, under the watch of former Minister Frank Anthony, and to my mind there were many irregularities. We don't need to have a repeat in this Jubilee Year.

The names of all the judges should be announced via the press. Students, lecturers and anyone else related to the Burrowes School of Art should be allowed to participate, but their entries should not be judged alongside entries submitted by the public. Let the public’s entries be judged independently in order to avoid a conflict of interest.

Let all photo entries for the Visual Arts section of the competition be judged on originality and story telling, and do not permit enhancement by computer graphics. Allow computer graphics for the Photography category.

Inasmuch as I was very reluctant to ever participate in another photography competition put on by a government, I have been pushed to do it by some persons who believe I am a strong contender. So, I publicly announce that I will be participating in the Guyana Visual Arts/Photo Competition 2016. Yours faithfully, T Pemberton