Seven
of Cayman’s cultural practitioners and preservationists will be
honoured for their contribution to the country’s arts and cultural
legacy at the Cayman National Cultural Foundation’s 26th
annual National Arts and Culture Awards which takes place on
Thursday, 20 February. Anne Laurel Walton, Conroy Ebanks, Debra
Barnes-Tabora, George Jones, Isaac Jeralow Rankine, Phillip Smith and
Wray Banker will be recognised for their talent and expertise in the
areas of culinary arts, fine arts, music, net and thatch making and
historic preservation.

National
Arts and Culture Awards are given to those who have made a
significant contribution to arts and culture or achieved a
high-quality body of creative work. The honourees will be presented
with their awards at a formal, invite-only ceremony surrounded by
family and friends. Presentations will also be made to Outstanding
Volunteers, Sponsor of the Year and the recipient of the Chairman’s
Award for long-term support of CNCF’s work.

Cultural
and heritage organisations, as well as the general public, were asked
to submit nominations for the CNCF Heritage Cross awards, and arts
organisations nominated individuals in their particular discipline
for the CNCF Star for Creativity in the Arts. A CNCF-appointed
committee ultimately chose the recipients.

CNCF
Heritage Cross

The
CNCF Heritage Cross award is reserved for individuals and groups who
have a consistent and active, quality engagement in the preservation
and/or celebration of Caymanian cultural heritage. The award has
three levels: GOLD for a lifetime of high-quality engagement; SILVER
(minimum of 10 years) and BRONZE (minimum of 5 years).

CNCF
Star for Creativity in the Arts

The
CNCF Star for Creativity in the Arts is awarded for artistic
endeavour, achievement and excellence in the arts. Like the Heritage
Cross, the Star for Creativity also has three levels reflecting the
span of the artist’s work and/or its overall impact.

“Change
is inevitable. Depending upon the manner in which change is
engineered, it can bring great benefits to help us grow individually
and as a community or it can do irreparable harm to our core
understanding of self. This latter, we must ever guard against; we
ignore our cultural heritage – tangible and intangible – at our
peril. The work of these our 2020 honourees speaks eloquently to love
of country, respect for traditions and a recommitment to the
ever-elusive ‘quest’. For this, CNCF thanks them and is proud to
recognise their work and worth”
said Henry Muttoo, CNCF Artistic Director.

GOLD
HERITAGE CROSS AWARDEES

Debra
Barnes-Tabora’s
passion for Cayman’s history was ignited during her high school
years under the tutelage of Richard Tressider. She joined the Cayman
Islands National Museum in 1989 following four years of central
government employment and has dedicated her life to the collection,
preservation, interpretation and exhibition of Cayman’s cultural
heritage. As the Museum’s Curation and Collections Manager, she is
proud to say she holds the best job in the world: collecting, caring
for and handling precious objects from Cayman’s past.

Mrs.
Barnes Tabora has a deep love for the traditional arts and was
instrumental in leading a traditional arts programme to promote and
preserve Caymanian thatch plaiting skills. She holds a master’s
degree with distinction in Museum Studies from the University of
Leicester in the United Kingdom. She is also a certified
Institutional Protection Manager, a qualification awarded by the
International Foundation for Cultural Property.

Isaac
Jeralow Rankine
is recognised as a culture ambassador of the Cayman Islands for his
ongoing work in the net making tradition, a discipline he learned
from his father and by watching his elders.

Born
in the district of East End, Mr. Rankine spent a lot of time as a boy
near the sea in the company of the district's elders watching the
fishermen cleaning their catch or making fish and turtle nets. Once
he completed his schooling, he began a successful career at sea, one
that lasted 21 years. It was during this time that he developed his
passion for knitting nets and hammocks.

Upon
his retirement from the sea in 1966, Mr. Rankine joined his brother,
drummer Stanford Rankine, as a member of the Happy Boys Band, under
the leadership of Mr. Radley Gourzong. He played maracas made from
small gourds that floated up on the beach which he filled with seeds
from a licorice tree.

A
retired seaman, respected musician and traditional net maker, Mr.
Rankine is among the few remaining knitters of nets in the Cayman
Islands. His cast nets, seine nets, trap nets and hammocks are all
fashioned by hand. He proudly displays his skills at various venues
around the island through his employ with Cayman Traditional Arts,
including bi-weekly demonstrations at the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman.

Anne
Laura Walton
nee Dixon was born at Booby Point, Spot Bay, Cayman Brac. Through her
culinary practices and involvement with the community, she has
excelled in the preservation and promotion of Caymanian heritage and
traditions. A paragon of Caymanian hospitality, Mrs. Walton has
significantly contributed to shaping the cultural identity of the
Cayman Islands, particularly Cayman Brac.

Mrs.
Walton’s introduction to the catering business was through a
fundraising initiative. Since then she has cooked for numerous events
in the community, including the Cayman Brac Agriculture Show, the
first Legislative Assembly Meeting in Cayman Brac in 1968 and the
50th anniversary of the Brac Legislative Assembly Meeting in 2018.

Mrs.
Walton’s dishes are a true example of Caymanian cuisine. She is one
of the last Caymanian-bred cooks still using the outside caboose to
prepare local dishes and heavy cakes. Maintaining this authentic
method of cooking contributes to her popularity, but it is her
friendly disposition and willingness to work with her local community
that truly make her shine.

Mrs.
Walton has welcomed many visitors to observe and learn her special
talents and has hosted several school groups in association with the
Cayman Traditional Arts programme. This has been a crucial step in
ensuring the continuation of these traditions. In 2000, she received
the Distinguished Woman’s Award and she has been the recipient of
numerous awards at National Heroes Day celebrations, including the
2014 Cultural Heritage Early Pioneer Award and the 2017 Long Service
Tourism Award. She has also won awards at Cayman Brac Agriculture
Shows.

BRONZE
HERITAGE CROSS AWARDEE

Phillip
Shibley Smith
is the most recent artisan to join the Cayman Brac Heritage House
thatch rope laying team. Currently a Nature Tourism Guide at District
Administration, he has proven himself to be a great asset to the
Civil Service.

Always
willing to share his zeal for culture and heritage with his
colleagues and audience, Mr. Smith has been involved in many Cayman
Brac Heritage House programmes and cultural community events. He has
participated in various traditional demonstrations such as making
peppermint candy and thatch rope, has conducted guided tours of the
Heritage House grounds and buildings and led sessions on how to
construct rosemary brooms. Whilst he may be the youngest of the
artisans, he has quickly mastered traditional methods and techniques
that often take many years to learn.

Mr.
Smith’s dedication has been a key element to the success of the
Brac thatch rope laying competitions which have been held annually
since 2017. He also travelled to Little Cayman as part of a team to
host the competition there in 2019. He was instrumental with the
gathering of tops and the setting up of the thatch strands on the
cart and winch machine for numerous occasions, earning him the
position of designated winch operator and instructor.

“Having
the opportunity to show my island through my eyes and personal
experiences of living here has allowed me to create unique
experiences for visitors to our islands. I love fulfilling their tour
requests and creating one-of-a-kind-memories for them,” says Mr.
Smith.

GOLD
STAR FOR CREATIVITY AWARDEES

Wray
Banker
from West Bay has been drawing artistic inspiration from Caymanian
culture for over 20 years. Mr. Banker, who formally studied graphic
design, incorporates his training into broader artistic skills. Often
thought of as a painter, he also does fine crafts, industrial and
graphic design, photography and hand-printing techniques of
collagraph and lithograph, learnt at Taller Experimental de Graphica
in Old Havana, Cuba.

Mr.
Banker’s humorous take on life is depicted throughout his work,
though there is always an underlying serious message that speaks to
Cayman’s culture, a rallying cry to ensure that this culture is
constantly identified and celebrated. He is a founding member of the
local artists’ cooperative ‘Native Sons’, launched in 1996,
which pays greater attention to the cultural and socio-economic
context of the people of the Cayman Islands.

Mr.
Banker received the Best of Countries Award for his 1996 Olympic
Committee pin and his 2003 Pan Am Games pin. In 2005 he was awarded
the McCoy Prize for photography. He has exhibited widely both in
Cayman and abroad and his work is held in various collections
including the Cayman Islands National Museum’s permanent
collection. During the 2003 Quincentennial celebrations he was
awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award in Arts by the Cayman Islands
Government. He is currently the Exhibits Coordinator at the National
Museum.

Conroy
Dalmain Ebanks
was born in Cayman Brac. He attended the Creek School, and then moved
to New York and went to Boys High School, studying Art as a minor. He
was awarded scholarships for the Brooklyn Museum Art School and the
Pratt Institute and also received a grant to attend Pan-American
Commercial Art School in New York City.

After
serving in the U.S. Army, Mr. Ebanks relocated to Florida where he
attended Miami-Dade Community College, majoring in Printing,
Photography and Drawing. Post-graduation, he became a business owner,
and upon retirement in 1999, moved back to the Brac.

When
his father died in 2004, Mr. Ebanks realised that he did not have a
good photograph of him, so he painted a scene of his father fishing
from the Creek Dock. That piece rekindled his passion for art. Since
then Mr. Ebanks has volunteered at several National Gallery art camps
and a few YMCA culture camps. He also became an Art Instructor for
the Cayman Traditional Arts (CTA) Heritage Arts Programme in Cayman
Brac, which allowed him to go into the schools to teach Year 6 and 7
students.

He
has exhibited in shows for the annual Cayman Brac National Trust
Queen's Birthday Tea Party, Pirates Week Cayman Brac Heritage Days
and Brac Autumn Festivals. In 2018 he was asked to exhibit his work
at the Cayman Brac Airport, and it remains on display in the Arrivals
hall. He is also a volunteer for AiR, an artist-in-residence
programme in the Brac where he oversees the exhibits, gives tours to
locals and tourists, and conducts workshops.

SILVER
STAR FOR CREATIVITY AWARDEE

Barbadian/Caymanian,
George
Jones
has been resident in the Cayman Islands for the past 15 years. He is
a founding member and keyboard player for one of Barbados’ and the
Caribbean’s top soca bands, Square One, and has recorded, arranged,
produced and performed on at least 15 Square One albums as well as
collaborated with other local and regional artists.

Since
migrating to Cayman, Mr. Jones has performed with several local
groups and in 2012 formed a new band with Brent McLean and Vashti
Bodden called CAY-NRG. CAY-NRG has performed at numerous local
festivals and carnivals over the years and represented the Cayman
Islands overseas.

Mr.
Jones served as a volunteer member of Batabano’s carnival committee
from 2012 until 2015 and in 2018 and 2019. He was also a volunteer
consultant for Pirates Week between 2013 and 2015. Since 2013 he has
been the musical director, arranger and accompanist for the annual
Rundown Comedy Revue, which is produced by CNCF. He has also provided
backup music for both local and visiting storytellers at the annual
Gimistory International Storytelling Festival.

Mr.
Jones was part of the Cayman Islands CARIFESTA delegations in 2017
and 2019. In 2014 he was honoured by the Honorary Consul of Barbados
in Cayman for his leadership, contribution and service to the
community. He also received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the
Barbados Music Awards in 2013, and in 2015 Square One was recognised
by the Barbados Music Awards as one of the greatest bands of all
time.

CHAIRMAN’S
AWARD

Sandra
Watler
has been actively involved in all areas of volunteering with the
National Cultural Foundation for the past four years. She sees the
National Cultural Foundation as a fundamental and integral part of
the Cayman Islands in the preservation and showcase of Caymanian
culture and delights in any opportunity to assist. To that extent,
she has served as chaperone, driver, coordinator, assistant, box
office attendant and stagehand. Though she does not identify herself
as an artist, Mrs. Watler actively demonstrates her love of the arts
and inculcates this love in her children and others in her support of
the work of CNCF over many years.

OUTSTANDING
VOLUNTEERS

Hazel
Brown

Ileann
Powery

Raj
Rangarajan