Llewellyn Xavier (St. Lucia 1945 -)
About
Llewellyn Xavier
b. 1945, Saint Lucia, West Indies
Education
School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Canada
At the age of seventeen, Llewellyn Xavier left Saint Lucia for Barbados, where he was first introduced to watercolors while working as an agricultural apprentice. In 1968, Xavier traveled to England and became a pioneer in the field of mail art. He moved to the United States in 1979 to attend the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Later, he joined a monastery in Montreal to become a Cistercian monk for some time before leaving the monastery, marrying, and returning to Saint Lucia in 1987.
Xavier created perhaps his most important works in 1993, titled Global Council for Restoration of the Earth’s Environment. This series of large collages, first shown at the Patrick Cramer Gallery in Geneva, incorporates a variety of recycled materials, including naturalist prints from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and postage stamps from many countries. The series also features signatures of various world leaders in environmentalism and a number of conservationists.
Xavier is well known for his oil paintings, characterized by multicolored drops of paint applied to the canvas using a series of special tools. Looking at his paintings, it is clear that Xavier draws inspiration from the Caribbean, his homeland, in his use of color and light. His work often reflects his love for the environment. Xavier describes his latest exhibition as “the result of fifty years of observing the behavior of paint, the juxtaposition of colors in close proximity to one another, creating texture and attempting to understand the paradox of form.”
In 2004, Llewellyn Xavier was awarded the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. His work is held in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, the Ulster Museum in Northern Ireland, and the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, among others.
b. 1945, Saint Lucia, West Indies
Education
School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Canada
At the age of seventeen, Llewellyn Xavier left Saint Lucia for Barbados, where he was first introduced to watercolors while working as an agricultural apprentice. In 1968, Xavier traveled to England and became a pioneer in the field of mail art. He moved to the United States in 1979 to attend the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Later, he joined a monastery in Montreal to become a Cistercian monk for some time before leaving the monastery, marrying, and returning to Saint Lucia in 1987.
Xavier created perhaps his most important works in 1993, titled Global Council for Restoration of the Earth’s Environment. This series of large collages, first shown at the Patrick Cramer Gallery in Geneva, incorporates a variety of recycled materials, including naturalist prints from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and postage stamps from many countries. The series also features signatures of various world leaders in environmentalism and a number of conservationists.
Xavier is well known for his oil paintings, characterized by multicolored drops of paint applied to the canvas using a series of special tools. Looking at his paintings, it is clear that Xavier draws inspiration from the Caribbean, his homeland, in his use of color and light. His work often reflects his love for the environment. Xavier describes his latest exhibition as “the result of fifty years of observing the behavior of paint, the juxtaposition of colors in close proximity to one another, creating texture and attempting to understand the paradox of form.”
In 2004, Llewellyn Xavier was awarded the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. His work is held in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, the Ulster Museum in Northern Ireland, and the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, among others.
Exhibition
Select Exhibitions
2019
Trans_Migration, UNIX Gallery, New York, NY
2017
Célébration, Fondation Clément, Martinique
The Mating Dance of the Unicorn, UNIX Gallery, New York, NY
Future Anesthetics, UNIX Gallery, New York, NY
2016
Blue Ocean Sanctuary (Solo), Phillips, New York, NY
2009
Carribean Art Gallery, Saint Lucia, West Indies
2007
Launch of Llewellyn Xavier: His Life and Work, Albemarie Gallery, London, England
2005
Whitechapel Gallery, London England
The New Waisall Art Gallery, Waisall England
1996
Harmony Hall, Jamaica, West Indies
1994
Mutual Life Art Gallery, Jamaica, West Indies
The Contemporary Print Show, London, England
1993
Barbados Museum, Barbadow, West Indies
Patrick Cramer Gallery, Geneva, Switzerland
New York Design Center, New York, NY
“My Press” Saint Lucia, West Indies
1992
Spedale Degll Innocenti, Florence, Italy
1991
Saint Lucia National Trust: Project Helen, Saint Lucia, West Indies
1984
Five “War Dances” (Conceptual Exhibition), Saint Lucia, West Indies
1982
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Canada
1979
Camera on Mass. Ave., Boston, Massachusetts
1977
Afro/American Historical Museum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Anamon Art Gallery, Toronto, Canada
Howard University, Washington D.C.
Piedmont College, NC
1976
Mazelow Gallery, Toronto, Canada
The National Archives, Ottawa, Canada
1975
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Canada
1974
Mazelow Gallery, Toronto Canada
1973
The Oxford Gallery, Oxford, England
I.P.G. (United Nations), New York, NY
Gallery II, Montreal, Canada
Saratoga Gallery, New York, NY
1972
The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
The Studio Museum, New York, NY
Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, England
Third British International Print Bienniale, Bradford, England
1971
The Commonwealth Institute, London, England
D.M. Gallery, London, England
Oxford University, Oxford, England
The Round House, London, England
Sussex University, Sussex, England
Select Honors
Order of the British Empire by Her Majesty the Queen for service in the field of art, 2004
Saint Lucia Environment Development Awareness Council, Founding Member
Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada, Life Member
Public Collections
The Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
The Studio Museum, New York
The American Museum of Natural History, New York
Fondation Clément, Martinique
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Canada
Howard University, Washington D.C.
The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, England
The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England
The Usher Museum, Northern Ireland
The Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, England
The Wolverhampton Art Gallery, England
Sussex University, Sussex, England
Oxford University, Oxford, England
The National Gallery, Jamaica
The Barbados Museum, Barbados
The State Department, USA (Art in Embassies Program)
UNESCO
Select Publications
2009
Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life: Americas by Gall, T.
2007
Llewellyn Xavier: His Life and Work by Lucie-Smith, E. and Stokes-Sims, L.
2006
Third Text, No. 78, Volume 20, Issue 1
2005
Back to Black: Art, Cinema and the Racial Imaginary by Archer-Shaw, P., Bailey, D., and Richard J.
2001
The Courier, Issue 189
A Walk Around the West Indies by Davies, H.
2000
Research in African Literatures, Volume 31
1999
Art in Barbados by Cummins, A. and Thompson, A.
1998
Caribbean Art edited by Poupeye, V.
1992
The Caribbean Artists Movement: A Literary and Cultural History 1966-1972 by Walmsley, A.
1990
Nine Lives of a Bush Banker by Money, G.
2019
Trans_Migration, UNIX Gallery, New York, NY
2017
Célébration, Fondation Clément, Martinique
The Mating Dance of the Unicorn, UNIX Gallery, New York, NY
Future Anesthetics, UNIX Gallery, New York, NY
2016
Blue Ocean Sanctuary (Solo), Phillips, New York, NY
2009
Carribean Art Gallery, Saint Lucia, West Indies
2007
Launch of Llewellyn Xavier: His Life and Work, Albemarie Gallery, London, England
2005
Whitechapel Gallery, London England
The New Waisall Art Gallery, Waisall England
1996
Harmony Hall, Jamaica, West Indies
1994
Mutual Life Art Gallery, Jamaica, West Indies
The Contemporary Print Show, London, England
1993
Barbados Museum, Barbadow, West Indies
Patrick Cramer Gallery, Geneva, Switzerland
New York Design Center, New York, NY
“My Press” Saint Lucia, West Indies
1992
Spedale Degll Innocenti, Florence, Italy
1991
Saint Lucia National Trust: Project Helen, Saint Lucia, West Indies
1984
Five “War Dances” (Conceptual Exhibition), Saint Lucia, West Indies
1982
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Canada
1979
Camera on Mass. Ave., Boston, Massachusetts
1977
Afro/American Historical Museum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Anamon Art Gallery, Toronto, Canada
Howard University, Washington D.C.
Piedmont College, NC
1976
Mazelow Gallery, Toronto, Canada
The National Archives, Ottawa, Canada
1975
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Canada
1974
Mazelow Gallery, Toronto Canada
1973
The Oxford Gallery, Oxford, England
I.P.G. (United Nations), New York, NY
Gallery II, Montreal, Canada
Saratoga Gallery, New York, NY
1972
The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
The Studio Museum, New York, NY
Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, England
Third British International Print Bienniale, Bradford, England
1971
The Commonwealth Institute, London, England
D.M. Gallery, London, England
Oxford University, Oxford, England
The Round House, London, England
Sussex University, Sussex, England
Select Honors
Order of the British Empire by Her Majesty the Queen for service in the field of art, 2004
Saint Lucia Environment Development Awareness Council, Founding Member
Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada, Life Member
Public Collections
The Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
The Studio Museum, New York
The American Museum of Natural History, New York
Fondation Clément, Martinique
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Canada
Howard University, Washington D.C.
The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, England
The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England
The Usher Museum, Northern Ireland
The Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, England
The Wolverhampton Art Gallery, England
Sussex University, Sussex, England
Oxford University, Oxford, England
The National Gallery, Jamaica
The Barbados Museum, Barbados
The State Department, USA (Art in Embassies Program)
UNESCO
Select Publications
2009
Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life: Americas by Gall, T.
2007
Llewellyn Xavier: His Life and Work by Lucie-Smith, E. and Stokes-Sims, L.
2006
Third Text, No. 78, Volume 20, Issue 1
2005
Back to Black: Art, Cinema and the Racial Imaginary by Archer-Shaw, P., Bailey, D., and Richard J.
2001
The Courier, Issue 189
A Walk Around the West Indies by Davies, H.
2000
Research in African Literatures, Volume 31
1999
Art in Barbados by Cummins, A. and Thompson, A.
1998
Caribbean Art edited by Poupeye, V.
1992
The Caribbean Artists Movement: A Literary and Cultural History 1966-1972 by Walmsley, A.
1990
Nine Lives of a Bush Banker by Money, G.