Building a community in the Caribbean
It will celebrate all those who contributed to its complex history –enslaved and free
AT the end of last year, Athena went to a fundraising reception in London and was heartened by news from Antigua, where an enlightened conservation project is under way to repair and restore Government House at the heart of the historic precinct in the capital, St John’s.
Having withstood the ravages of fires, hurricanes, earthquakes and termites, the house is an extraordinary survival of shared heritage and one of the most important historic buildings on the island and, indeed, in the Caribbean. When it was threatened with demolition, the governorgeneral, Sir Rodney Williams, intervened decisively to save it. Launched by The Duke of Sussex two years ago, the restoration project aims to enable this operational government building to be opened to the public for a range of multiple uses.
What can be seen today is a fascinating accretive building, with many layers of history superimposed on the structure and its garden. This makes it vital that everyone understands the complexity of the site before embarking on its restoration.
A huge amount of investigative work has already been done pro bono in a global collaboration with inputs from the UK, the USA and Jamaica, with local knowledge and guidance from the World Monuments Fund and The Prince’s Foundation.
With the benefit of private funds from British sponsors, this is now being complemented by world-class expertise from a leading UK conservation practice. It will develop the draft conservation management plan and verify the works as they proceed.
However, the project is not only about the sensitive repair of an important piece of shared heritage, important as that may be. It will celebrate all those who have contributed to its complex history—enslaved and free—whose craftsmanship and skills have left a truly shared legacy of which all descendants can be proud.
What makes the project so unusual is that, as the project is completed in stages, it will become the national focus for celebrating Antigua’s rich architectural heritage, with exhibitions, education, training, receptions and hospitality all taking place alongside a functioning government house. There will be an art gallery for local artists, teaching space for school children, a cafe, a bookshop and a living museum of the history of the house and the country and even a therapeutic gardening programme.
The project is engaging people from all walks of life: young and old, skilled and unskilled, and even the incarcerated, with prisoners learning new skills under expert supervision. It offers real opportunities for developing local expertise and jobs in horticulture, conservation, craft skills, museum curation and visitor management.
Part of the legacy will be to provide a catalyst for the regeneration of the wider historic precinct and a template for future heritage legislation for the island.