Shac-Shac Stories
Suelae Robinson is an Antiguan artist of English and Guyanese descent. Through patchwork, collage, and embroidery, she creates textile artworks that speak on Caribbean narratives, giving a voice to those who are often unheard. Inspired by the tropical environment, her colourful patchwork style reflects the Caribbean’s rich fusion of cultures. Her research often takes an ethnobotanical approach, investigating the connection between people and nature, asking the question, who are Caribbean people at their roots? In a world where the truth is often hidden or forgotten, Suelae uses mythology and imagination to recover lost Caribbean stories. By sharing communal knowledge, she examines the past, to understand the present and hopefully provide a space for more compassion in the future. She is currently based in Rotterdam.
Why Shac-Shac Stories?
'Shac-Shac' (also spelled 'Shak-Shak') is a given name of the Flamboyant Tree (Delonix regia) which grows across the Caribbean, annually blooming bright scarlet or yellow flowers. Native to Madagascar, it was introduced to the Caribbean during colonial times. The Shac-Shac tree represents the grace of diasporic and indigenous people in the Caribbean, who despite displacement, still stand proud. They Resist through expressions of passion and joy. My practice as a storyteller of Caribbean culture and history aims to embody this attitude by uplifting peoples stories. In Antigua we call it the Shac-Shac tree because it produces large seed pods, that when shaken create a musical “sha-ca-sha-ca” sound.
