University News Last updated 15 August 2012
The Jamaican and American Olympic teams may have now left the City but the legacy of Jamaican culture remains in Birmingham – in the form of a collection of posters celebrating Jamaican life, and culture.
Kalaboration is a month long arts project currently on display at The Drum by internationally acclaimed Michael Thompson, aka Freestylee, and Birmingham Institute of Art and Design (BIAD).
The ‘Freestylee: Artist without Borders’ exhibition provides a glimpse into an eclectic collection of approximately 400 social and cultural poster designs, covering a variety of topics ranging from social justice, cultural, political and protest.
Originally from Jamaica, Freestylee studied graphic design at the Jamaica School of Art in Kingston before moving to the United Sates in 1990 where he worked as a freelance graphic designer and consultant.
Freestylee said: “It is a great honour to be invited to be a part of this amazing celebration of Jamaica, the Olympic Games and London 2012. I would like to thank all of those who have come out to experience my work.
“Reggae music is my biggest inspiration. This exhibition focuses on the topic of Jamaican popular culture and heritage. Freestylee art is about using my poster design as a vehicle for social change, what you can see here is the creative platform to spread that message and build that movement.”
The exhibition launched last month showcasing works from across Freestylee’s career and is the first of a number of arts projects organised by Kalaboration. Funded by the Arts Council England and Birmingham City Council, Kalaboration is a partnership project between The Drum Arts Centre, Birmingham City University’s School of Art and Rogueplay Theatre. The project aims to provide artists and young people with the opportunity to produce and participate in workshops and discussions, celebrating the Olympics and the Jamaican and USA teams presence in Birmingham.