Artist Junnel Lewis recalls how at age two, she "decorated’ the white walls of the family’s home with her paints and crayons. She told WMN her parents didn’t panic, but instead provided her with additional art supplies with which to hone her skills. Last month she and her sister, Cleo Lewis, exhibited selected works in Venice, Italy, at the 2023 Canvas Venice International Art Fair – a fair that presents collective and solo projects by leading and emerging international artists.
The sisters received an invitation via email to participate in the fair, and after they did their research and were satisfied that the invitation was legitimate, they approached the Ministry of Arts and Culture for financial support and were successful. They exhibited four pieces: Cleo's Bonita and Orange Me, and Junnel's The Savannah and Golden Forest.
[caption id="attachment_1017222" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Junnel Lewis's The Lake hangs in the National Art Museum of China, in Beijing. -[/caption]
"The privilege of presenting our art was tremendous. We were both blown away by the aesthetics of the location. The sights, smells, tastes and sounds will remain in our memories forever," Junnel said.
The Lewis sisters are from Arima and spent their childhood immersed in art. They describe their mother as someone with "a good eye for style and colour," and their late father as "a talented watercolour artist."
But although they are both in love with art, they have chosen to pursue alternative full-time careers. Cleo, 28, holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Sunderland, in England which she completed in 2022 – an achievement of which she is very proud. Junnel, 42, is an accountant who offers consultancy services to a range of individuals and organisations. Within recent times, however, they have found themselves in the limelight for something they have considered their long-standing "hobby."
[caption id="attachment_1017226" align="alignnone" width="751"] Junnel Lewis' Flamenco. -[/caption]
Although they had been creating art long before the pandemic of 2020, they had never really shared any of their work with anyone outside of their immediate circle. Their actual entry into the art arena came unexpectedly. As the accountant for the Bocas Lit Fest, Junnel is surrounded by creative people, and it was during a casual conversation with one of her co-workers that she was pointed introduced to the Art Society of Trinidad and Tobago and Women in Art. This conversation prompted the sisters to submit work to the society, which led to exhibits. Cleo also recently exhibited at the Rotunda Gallery, where she showcased her My Safety Boots, My Future. She described it as a representation of her journey as she sought to navigate the challenges of making her way to success in a predominantly male industry.
“All my life I wanted to be an engineer because of my love of mathematics, physics, drawing, problem solving and designing…These boots can fit both male and female, and females can do the tasks just as good as
