My Carnival Journey
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Good day everyone, my name is Keisha Belton, and I am a graphic designer, with a Masters in Fine Arts and a Bachelor in Accounting. I am a lover of the arts, with a distinct passion for documentary photography!
As a woman of Grenadian descent, my family and I celebrated Caribbean Carnivals. Carnival was not just an event to celebrate and party. For me, Carnival is our official holiday, celebrating our deep-rooted tradition based on religion, folklore, music, storytelling, and creativity of the Caribbean and surrounding areas.
Every Carnival season I find myself in DEVOTION, a devotion that is not represented as much as it should. I plan to change that with my Photography project:
MY CARNIVAL JOURNEY, The Photomentary
The celebration of Carnival became a place where everyone surrounding me has a common ground. Everyone involved in carnival gave me a sense of belonging. Through this belonging I have discovered a tradition that connects the people of the West Indies together throughout the world.
Most people are familiar with what we call fancy mas. During parades fancy mas are the memorable and vibrant costumes that you may see during a Caribbean Carnival parade. But did you know there is more? See we the Caribbean people created characters (Old Mas) that told stories. Midnight Robber, Sailor Mas, Baby Doll, Borokeete, Dragon, Bookman, Pierrot Grenade, Jab Jab, and Dame Lorraine to just name a few.
As a kid the D.C. Caribbean Carnival wasn’t that big or well-known it was more like a “festival” as appose to a full fledged Caribbean Carnival. Thinking back today from my perspective at the time the migration of the West Indian population was still growing. With that said at the same time you have to think about the effect of migrating to another land and the assimilation effect has on the future generations. In the ‘80’s, it became a gathering where you could hear many different types of West Indian music from Calypso to Soca to Roots. I loved it because it was always filled with the best sights, sounds, and smells. Dinking on Cola Champagne and chewing on sugar cane became one of my all time favorite things to do while waiting to eat that big meal of the day. I would watch my parents laugh and walk down memory lane with the people they hadn’t seen in years. Carnival became a time where there was always joy.
(Me, circa 1985, D.C. Caribbean Festival)
Fast forward in time for me, the past 16 years I have participated in the creation of carnival costumes (mas), traveled to different cities in the America’s, had priceless conversations with my elders about their Carnival memories, and have pass down some of the traditions that I learned to my next generation of Caribbean Americans. Through my travels and experiences I have steadily documented My Carnival Journey through photos and videos.
As I traveled to Toronto with my Mas Camp (the group of people who design and create Carnival costumes) I decided to share my first book, My Carnival Journey – The Prequel, with one of the leaders of the camp. In that very moment the book was passed from one person to the next. Soon after everyone who traveled with me that year took a look and immediately expressed their love for My Carnival Journey. My elders felt very honored that I would even explain or illustrate the tradition. They understood that if next generations didn’t pick up the tradition the culture would become lost.
I realized a few things that year.
· The decision of our family members migrating to the Americas the traditions of our people become diluted or partially forgotten.
· Yes, Carnival is mind blowing and fun, but there are elements that are not being remembered or participated in as much as the fancy mas you see in Caribbean Carnivals.
· Its necessary to share…It’s a do or die situation.
· I have deep need to take this journey, for it to grow, and gift it to the world, my people, and the next generations the awesomeness of my culture.
· I don’t just want to express the visual excitement of carnival, but also the derivative of it all in an entertaining way.
As I searched for publications that encompasses information about the history of Caribbean Carnival I found that most read like a textbook. There isn’t a publication or collection of work out there that cohesively illustrates and the diversity of the oral history into the written word with vibrant imagery.
My Carnival Journey, The Photomentary is a like a documentary but telling a story through my photos. I have been to several cities in the North America, but I would like to expand my journey. In order to continue with My Carnival Journey I will travel to different countries to document the Caribbean (…and partially the African) Diaspora. There are a multiple of traditions that connect us all.
Just as it was beginning to become one of the biggest Caribbean Carnivals my city Washington, D.C. no longer has our own Carnival. The years of sharing this tradition with my nieces and nephews has come to an abrupt end. I feel sadness that they no longer have an easy access to their tradition as they once did.
With your help, in 2016 the 10th year of photographing Caribbean Carnivals my life mission is creating the book with purpose and love. My expansion includes Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Toronto, Miami, and the homecoming of Grenada/Aruba-the place of my family’s tradition. With your help I will be able to travel to other countries and not only document my journey, but I will be able to get to the sources of these traditions.
Are you ready?
Yes?...
Well let’s go!
IT’S CARNIVAL TIME!!!
As a woman of Grenadian descent, my family and I celebrated Caribbean Carnivals. Carnival was not just an event to celebrate and party. For me, Carnival is our official holiday, celebrating our deep-rooted tradition based on religion, folklore, music, storytelling, and creativity of the Caribbean and surrounding areas.
Every Carnival season I find myself in DEVOTION, a devotion that is not represented as much as it should. I plan to change that with my Photography project:
MY CARNIVAL JOURNEY, The Photomentary
The celebration of Carnival became a place where everyone surrounding me has a common ground. Everyone involved in carnival gave me a sense of belonging. Through this belonging I have discovered a tradition that connects the people of the West Indies together throughout the world.
Most people are familiar with what we call fancy mas. During parades fancy mas are the memorable and vibrant costumes that you may see during a Caribbean Carnival parade. But did you know there is more? See we the Caribbean people created characters (Old Mas) that told stories. Midnight Robber, Sailor Mas, Baby Doll, Borokeete, Dragon, Bookman, Pierrot Grenade, Jab Jab, and Dame Lorraine to just name a few.
As a kid the D.C. Caribbean Carnival wasn’t that big or well-known it was more like a “festival” as appose to a full fledged Caribbean Carnival. Thinking back today from my perspective at the time the migration of the West Indian population was still growing. With that said at the same time you have to think about the effect of migrating to another land and the assimilation effect has on the future generations. In the ‘80’s, it became a gathering where you could hear many different types of West Indian music from Calypso to Soca to Roots. I loved it because it was always filled with the best sights, sounds, and smells. Dinking on Cola Champagne and chewing on sugar cane became one of my all time favorite things to do while waiting to eat that big meal of the day. I would watch my parents laugh and walk down memory lane with the people they hadn’t seen in years. Carnival became a time where there was always joy.
(Me, circa 1985, D.C. Caribbean Festival)
Fast forward in time for me, the past 16 years I have participated in the creation of carnival costumes (mas), traveled to different cities in the America’s, had priceless conversations with my elders about their Carnival memories, and have pass down some of the traditions that I learned to my next generation of Caribbean Americans. Through my travels and experiences I have steadily documented My Carnival Journey through photos and videos.
As I traveled to Toronto with my Mas Camp (the group of people who design and create Carnival costumes) I decided to share my first book, My Carnival Journey – The Prequel, with one of the leaders of the camp. In that very moment the book was passed from one person to the next. Soon after everyone who traveled with me that year took a look and immediately expressed their love for My Carnival Journey. My elders felt very honored that I would even explain or illustrate the tradition. They understood that if next generations didn’t pick up the tradition the culture would become lost.
I realized a few things that year.
· The decision of our family members migrating to the Americas the traditions of our people become diluted or partially forgotten.
· Yes, Carnival is mind blowing and fun, but there are elements that are not being remembered or participated in as much as the fancy mas you see in Caribbean Carnivals.
· Its necessary to share…It’s a do or die situation.
· I have deep need to take this journey, for it to grow, and gift it to the world, my people, and the next generations the awesomeness of my culture.
· I don’t just want to express the visual excitement of carnival, but also the derivative of it all in an entertaining way.
As I searched for publications that encompasses information about the history of Caribbean Carnival I found that most read like a textbook. There isn’t a publication or collection of work out there that cohesively illustrates and the diversity of the oral history into the written word with vibrant imagery.
My Carnival Journey, The Photomentary is a like a documentary but telling a story through my photos. I have been to several cities in the North America, but I would like to expand my journey. In order to continue with My Carnival Journey I will travel to different countries to document the Caribbean (…and partially the African) Diaspora. There are a multiple of traditions that connect us all.
Just as it was beginning to become one of the biggest Caribbean Carnivals my city Washington, D.C. no longer has our own Carnival. The years of sharing this tradition with my nieces and nephews has come to an abrupt end. I feel sadness that they no longer have an easy access to their tradition as they once did.
With your help, in 2016 the 10th year of photographing Caribbean Carnivals my life mission is creating the book with purpose and love. My expansion includes Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Toronto, Miami, and the homecoming of Grenada/Aruba-the place of my family’s tradition. With your help I will be able to travel to other countries and not only document my journey, but I will be able to get to the sources of these traditions.
Are you ready?
Yes?...
Well let’s go!
IT’S CARNIVAL TIME!!!
Organizer
Keisha Belton
Organizer
Greenbelt, MD
