The Book Junkie
2022
Acrylic on Stretched Canvas
18” x 24”
Lopinot Bridge
2022
Acrylic on Stretched Canvas
16” x 20”
ARTIST Q&A
How did you come to art?
Growing up, I always had a love for art. However, life took me down a different professional path into the corporate world. Eight years ago, I made a decision to embrace my real passion, and I started to paint and sketch; these became ways to deal with the stress of a demanding career. I started working in oils, but now I mostly work with acrylics, watercolors and charcoal, as well as digital art.
Would you tell us about how you came to your style and what you term “Caribbean Psychedelics”?
I view my artistic process with each piece as intuitive, painting what I feel when I look at the subject, applying different colors and tones to capture the vibrancy and soul of the subject. This style of painting I have termed “Caribbean Psychedelics” as it brings non-traditional and vibrant color tones to the subject to shift the viewer’s perception of the image.
Paradise in Pink
2022
Acrylic on Stretched Canvas
20” x 20”
Who are your inspirations?
My inspiration comes from everywhere and everyone, and not just from the masters like Picasso and Dali, but from living artists like Austrian painter Voka (Rudolf Vogl) and Trinidadian painter Che Lovelace. But Trinidad and Tobago is a melting pot of many ethnicities and cultures arising from India, Africa, Portugal, China, among others, and I draw much of my inspiration from that.
You work both digitally and in acrylics. Do you see these mediums as being in tension or in harmony?
Very much in harmony. Because of my style and use of color, I don’t see a division between both mediums. People have commented when viewing the pieces online that it’s difficult to tell which medium I used, whether it’s paint or digital. My first passion is creating with paint, getting the hands on feeling of the paint, the brushes and the whole process — making mistakes and correcting until you finally produce something with which you are genuinely happy.
Ferns in Psychedelic Harmony
2023
Acrylic on Stretched Canvas
14” x 18”
Sanctuary
2023
Digital Art
Tell us about the use of perspective in ‘Sanctuary’.
Artists use perspective to create a realistic impression of depth in a piece, among other things. In “Sanctuary”, together with using the standard lines on the deck towards the vanishing points, I also wanted to play with color. The use of pink on the deck brings it out, adds a weight while also contrasting sharply with the green foliage. There is a motion, there is movement into something ineffable.
What do you mean when you advise people to “paint without fear”?
As artists, we all have this fear when we are creating: if it will liked, if it speaks to the audience, if it would be socially acceptable. My aim is to paint and create without fear from my soul, embracing the madness as it leads to the birth of my true authentic self.
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Anil Avery Bridglal is an artist and qualified chartered accountant from Trinidad and Tobago. He has exhibited in Rotunda Gallery, Arnim’s Art Galleria and the Art Society of Trinidad and Tobago. He was featured in the Global Geographies Artist Spotlight in 2022. Color Me Caribbean was his debut solo art show in October 2023 at Arnim’s Art Galleria. His work can be found online on Instagram and his NFTs can be purchased here.