With the passing of each day, even the moments that take our breath away become distant memories. The true power lies with those who not only hold onto those moments and make them last forever, but also share their transformative properties with the world. Those who transcend language, time, and belief with messages that unite us. That is the ability of an artist. That is what Geoffrey Holder was. And sharing his art is what the James Fuentes Gallery is doing with the recently opened exhibit of his work, “Saturday Night.”
“What I’ve been really working on establishing is that he did this every day,” said his son, Leo Holder. “He’s known for a lot else, but this is first, foremost, and center, and he never wavered. He probably painted every day from the moment he was 8 years old.”
Holder was born into humble beginnings in Port of Spain, Trinidad, yet he died a beacon of cultural impact whose influence shone across the globe, especially in New York City. Holder was a Tony Award winner, actor, celebrated performer, costume designer, and choreographer for the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater. While he evolved into a multidisciplinary titan, he remained connected to his first artistic outlet: painting. His son Leo hopes to reframe the narrative about the gifts he gave the world.
“My goal is to reset the balance,” said Holder. “A celebrity didn’t paint these paintings, a painter did.”
Leo Holder recognizes that some of the creations that brought his father the most notoriety are not considered traditional art, certainly not in the vein of the pieces in “Saturday Night.” However, for Holder, it’s not a matter of rewriting history, but of providing context.
“It’s been 40 years since my father’s commercials,” said Holder, referring to an ad campaign his father did for a popular soft drink. “They are in the past, and frankly speaking, they were a small aspect of what he did. It’s just that they were a big hit, so he’s known for that. But when you think about it, he’s only been in a handful of films. He’s only been in a handful of commercials, none of which is the kind of volume that makes a career otherwise. But this artwork is something he did for over 70 years. This comes first, and I’m finally giving it a chance to breathe and find its own audience.”
What “Saturday Night” revealed to me was the way Holder charts a path to another time and space with each stroke of his paintbrush. The scene he masterfully sets is the Trinidad of his youth, specifically the dark and intimate dance halls where smoke greets your eyes upon entry and the smell of sweat hangs in the air as a sign of work done in rhythmic motion. Geoffrey Holder’s parents met in one of those dance halls, forever linking him to those same venues.
“It’s a scene that is very ripe for coming back to, to be able to create and make different observations and different stories,” said Holder.
While “Saturday Night” revisits Geoffrey Holder’s earliest memories, the remarkable thing is that, despite being created over a span of three decades, from 1980 to 2006, the works still speak with a single, cohesive voice and an unmistakable style.
“The thing about these paintings is they look both contemporary and 100 years old at the same time,” said Holder. “That’s the reason why he’s resonating with younger artists. Their standard is to be polymathic. And here’s somebody who was doing it 70 years ago. He did music, he did choreography, he designed, and he did it not only well, but everything he did was an extension of his art.”
The viewer experience offered at the James Fuentes Gallery is much more than fluorescent lights, white walls, and depictions of life on display. It’s a history lesson in human interaction, eschewing haute and monotonous traditionalism for brooding images of passion and freedom. But perhaps the most exciting part of this new exhibit is that fans can expect to see more groundbreaking work from Geoffrey Holder in the near future.
“There are different subjects and different styles of painting you’ll be seeing in the next few years,” said Holder of his father’s work. “We’ve just scratched the surface.”
“Saturday Night” by Geoffrey Holder will be on display at the James Fuentes Gallery until January 10. For more info, visit jamesfuentes.com/exhibitions/saturday-night.