National Gallery Announces 4th Cayman Islands Biennial Awardees

The National Gallery of the Cayman Islands (NGCI) is proud to announce the award recipients for the 4th Cayman Islands Biennial, Archipelago. At a lively award ceremony held on Friday, 23 January, the National Gallery recognised a selection of artists whose work exemplifies the technical proficiency and conceptual exploration defining the contemporary Caymanian art scene. Archipelago, co-curated by Davin K. Ebanks and Dr. Joseph L. Underwood, brings together 76 artworks by 60 artists/collectives across six venues on all three islands. This year’s Biennial explores the unique intersection between individual identity and collective experience during a period of rapid national transformation. By framing Caymanian society as an archipelago—both a single conglomerate entity and a collection of distinct parts—the exhibition serves as a nexus for open dialogue, critique, and personal reflection on global geopolitics, social isolation, and the evolving identity of the nation. The Awards The Biennial’s highest honour, the Bendel Hydes Award is named after the late pioneer of Caymanian contemporary art. This prestigious accolade carries a significant monetary prize, an exhibition opportunity at the National Gallery, and a commitment to purchasing the work for the National Gallery’s permanent collection. This year’s Award was shared by two artists working in very different mediums: Joanna Austin for StreetView (2025) - a collection of drawings of South Church Street; and Randy Chollette for Laid in Stone (2024-2025) a site-specific installation that uses stacked and painted cement blocks to represent generational growth. The Bendel Hydes ‘Emerging Artist’ Award was also presented at the event. This award, which recognises a practitioner who shows exceptional promise, includes a monetary grant specifically intended to support a residency programme or professional training opportunity, furthering the Gallery’s mission to nurture the next generation of talent. The prize was awarded to Iain MacRae for his painting triptych: Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, Little Cayman (2025) which uses layered symbolism, visual storytelling and scale to explore the interconnected identities of the three islands. Says MacRae, “I am deeply grateful to receive the Emerging Artist Prize. The support and recognition are especially meaningful at this stage of my practice, and I am inspired by the strength and generosity of the artistic community involved. Many of the previous winners of this prize are massive inspirations to me, so to share this with them is incredibly humbling.” Stefan Langlois was recognised as the Emerging Artist Award Runner-Up for his ambitious Ode to Ten (2025) sculptural installation, which is on view at Gram Bellas in North Side. In addition to the Bendel Hydes Awards, special commendations were extended to Nancy Barnard (née Kirkaldy) for Our Built Heritage: Identity Loss (and Protection) and The Clayton Nixon House (2025); Andre Jennings for Inner Thoughts (2025); Michael Mothen for Fisherman’s Dream (2025) featuring Rita Estevanovich; and Elizabeth Paige Smith for her site-specifc installation at Gram Bellas, Who Remains, (2025). This year’s Awardees were determined via a rigorous selection process and lengthy deliberations, which reflected the overall level of excellence of work on view. NGCI wishes to extend sincere thanks to this year’s jurors: Carl A. Brown (NGCI Board Member and Chairperson of the Collections Committee), Kerri Anne Chisholm (Artist, Curator, and Founder of Gram Bellas), Davin K. Ebanks (Biennial Co-curator) , Dr. Veerle Poupeye (Director of the National Museum), and Dr. Joseph L. Underwood (Biennial Co-curator). “Each iteration of the Cayman Islands Biennial serves as a vital platform for artists working across a range of contemporary art disciplines, ideas, and approaches, inviting viewers to consider how art responds to both local realities and global dialogues. This year’s Bendel Hydes Awardees have sought to both honour our cultural heritage in their work while also embracing new ideas and experimental practices that speak to our evolving cultural identity,” says NGCI Director Natalie Urquhart. “Congratulations are extended to each of them, and indeed all of the Biennial artists, for challenging us to look more closely, think more deeply, and to imagine more expansively about our contemporary moment.” The awards were presented by Hon. Isaac Rankine, Minister for Youth, Sports, Culture & Heritage, and Hon. Julie Hunter, Parliamentary Secretary for Youth, Sports, Culture & Heritage. Remarks and congratulations were extended by Hon. Minister Rankine, along with the Biennial Sponsor Butterfield, represented by Rory Mann, Vice President of Marketing, Mrs Susan A Olde, OBE, National Gallery Chairperson, and Natalie Urquhart, NGCI Director. In addition to the honouring the Awardees, congratulations were extended to each of the 60 participating artists, along with the six Biennial partner venues—the Cayman Islands National Museum, Little Cayman Museum, Cayman Brac Heritage House, Mission House, and Gram Bella’s—for their support in making this a dynamic tri-island event. Archipelago – 4th Cayman Islands Biennial is on view until 18 February. Admission to the Gallery and the exhibitions is free to all. Opening times are Monday to Saturday 10:00am – 5:00pm. As the Biennial enters its final weeks, the public is encouraged to visit the various exhibition sites before the official closing on February 18, 2026. On Tuesday, February 17, a Catalogue Launch and Biennial Closing Event and will be hosted at the National Gallery when the 160-page exhibition catalogue will be launched. The catalogue is part-supported by a generous grant from CNCF’s Grants for the Arts programme, and will be distributed to schools and libraries across the Cayman Islands. In addition, free community programmes run throughout early February. For more information about the exhibitions and the associated programme of events please visit https://www.nationalgallery.org.ky/whats-on/ . This project was made possible through the generous support of our sponsors: Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited and the support of the Ministry of Youth, Sports, Culture and Heritage.