Art and media celebrated at Aggrey Brown Lecture
Published:Friday | April 19, 2013 | 12:00 AM
On April 11, the usually bland Undercroft at the University of the West Indies, Mona campus was transformed into a night of bright flashing lights and artistic decor. The occasion: the third annual Aggrey Brown Lecture, put on by The Caribbean Institute of Media and Communications (CARIMAC).
Hosted by the charming and vivacious Charmaine Henry, the lecture, a tribute to the late Professor Aggrey Brown for his outstanding contribution to CARIMAC, the UWI community and the Jamaican society as a whole, saw many important public figures in attendance, including Minister of Education Ronald Thwaites and principal of UWI Mona, Professor Gordon Shirley.
This lecture was not only an intellectual memorial, but, this year, also saw the lecture as a graded assignment for the students of Communication Analysis and Planning (CAP), in the form of a public activity. They were in charge of every single major and minor detail of putting on this grand event. Professor Aggrey Brown was always appreciative of the arts, so it was most fitting that this year's lecture examined the theme, 'Media and the Arts: Tools for communication, education and development'.
The lively and packed audience was treated to a showcase of different facets of the performing arts, with entertainment by Ashe, UWI Pop society, as well as a beautiful violin selection from Kari Brown, the daughter of the late Aggrey Brown, among others.
The student-driven event saw the lecture of the night being delivered by radio talk-show host, playwright and media personality, Dr Barbara Gloudon. Clinging to her every word, laughter, exclamations and applause echoed, as Gloudon took her audience on a descriptive journey of media through the arts, emphasising the influential relationship between both art and media.
With the programme put on pause, a variety of scrumptious foods on display was consumed by the audience, who took the break to indulge their palates. The programme continued with more engaging entertainment, which closed the evening's proceedings.