Caribbean Artist Movement: Life Lessons

It was through his involvement with the Caribbean Artist Movement in 1966 that he came to exhibit his paintings with the group:

“As a law student embarking on a creative path I was indebted to painter Aubrey Williams who taught me to stretch my own canvasses and advised me where best to source art materials. When I had my first one-man exhibition in London, poet Kamau Brathwaite found time to support the private view with an organised poetry reading. Years later when I began to write about CAM, he dubbed me the CAMbassador.”

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Errol Lloyd, The Lesson, 1972

The group included sculptor Ron Moody, who would become an important figure in Lloyd’s career. “Ronald Moody taught me how to cast my sculpture in bronze resin in his Fulham studio. He had trained as a dentist and brought a precise, scientific approach to the process.”

Subsequently Lloyd worked on commissioned busts of a number of prominent West Indians, including Sir Alexander Bustamante, Lord Pitt, C.L.R. James, Gary Sobers, John La Rose and George Lamming.

“At the outset of CAM I had the privilege to work on a commissioned bust of the great C.L.R. James, one of the most formidable intellects of his day. Sittings were at his Willesden home, and I made sure not to hurry the process in order to savour extended moments in his company. The bust of C.L.R. James led to several more commissioned bronze busts of prominent West Indians, including those of Sir Alexander Bustamante, past Prime Minister of Jamaica, cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers, politician Lord Pitt, John La Rose, Linton Kwesi Johnson and others.”

His bust of Linton Kwesi Johnson is Lloyd’s salute to Johnson’s commanding voice in performance, his poetry and courage in challenging the forces of oppression in society, giving voice to popular protest.

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Errol Lloyd, Linton Kwesi Johnson Bronze Bust, 2006