Cayman joins in a celebration of drawing

(CNS): Already celebrated in 22 countries worldwide, Cayman will be the 23rd when it joins in the Big Draw arts festival for the first time next month. The month-long festival will include drawing events, competitions and workshops for people of all ages, designed to bring Cayman’s multicultural community together to draw, think, laugh and dream. Presented under the Patronage of illustrator and children’s author, Lady Rabia Abdul-Hakim, in partnership with the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands, the Big Draw KY will launch with a unique cartoon art exhibit at the National Gallery on Monday, 1 October, followed by numerous activities for the rest of the month.

On October 13, the official Big Draw KY Day, thousands of participants will be invited to “make their mark” on a huge ream of paper. The continuous drawing project will be photographed and showcased as a "scrolling panorama" online at the Big Draw KY website by the end of the month.

“Drawing is a great way to make art accessible to the youth and it is a fundamental part of creativity and intelligence,” said Big Draw KY Patron, Lady Rabia.

"Great thinkers are openly acknowledging the contribution of creative professionals. In fact, many of today’s most innovative products combine technology, creativity and design and more young people are opting for creative careers. Therefore, it is vital that we nurture creative skills in our future gamers, fashion designers, architects, illustrators, animators and producers.

“The Big Draw KY is also a great opportunity to unite our diverse community and drawing is the perfect medium to do that. Drawing is a universal mode of communication, transcending language barriers, cultural divides, classes and ages,” she added.

More than 30 Big Draw KY events will take place during October throughout the Islands, including those presented by the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands on the Sister Islands.

“The importance of drawing cannot be underestimated,” said NGCI Education Manager Eme Paschalides. “Drawing is critical to early educational development and remains an important tool of creative expression throughout our lives. In addition, virtually all of the objects we use in day-to-day life begin on a drawing board. We are therefore delighted to participate in this global project and bring attention to this form of creativity. It is a skill that can be practised by everyone and to demonstrate this we are inviting all members of the public to our ‘open door’ studio day on October 20th. There will be free walk-in workshops for everyone all day long.”

Other activities include numerous cartoon drawing workshops; the Draw Off; the Urban/Graffiti Art competition; the Celebrity Come Draw With Me classes; the Night Lines event, where photographers capture amazing images drawn with fire and light; and All Drawn Out, a chilling Halloween event drawing body parts and a costume competition. There will also be Nail Art events for girls.

Local organizations, schools and businesses are encouraged to participate by organising their own Big Draw KY activities and registering their events on the Big Draw KY website at: www.bigdrawcaymanislands.weebly.com.

The Big Draw KY also offers a great opportunity for sponsors who want to engage the youth and families and do something innovative, the gallery stated.

Sponsors should contact Big Draw KY at: contessablack@hotmail.com with the subject “Sponsor.”

The Big Draw was started by the Guild of St. George, a non-profit organization founded by 19th century critic and educator John Ruskin. Now led by the Campaign for Drawing in London, the aim is to raise awareness of drawing’s power as a tool for learning, observation, creativity, and social and cultural engagement. In 2011, more than 1,300 Big Draw events took place across the United Kingdom and internationally.