As Bermuda celebrates its 400th anniversary, Charles Zuill reviews a major art exhibition celebrating 400 years of the Island's art.

When you visit the Bermuda National Gallery to see the Autumn exhibition, you will discover a show that is strangely familiar, indeed, you will see objects that, in some cases, you will have seen before, but are now presented in strange, new contexts.

The current BNG exhibition is the result of the cooperative efforts of the the Gallery and the Bermuda National Trust, which have combined items from their respective collections to create a show that celebrates 400 years of Bermuda art.

As you enter the gallery, straight ahead is an installation that centres on an 18th Century gate-leg table, with four chairs, all occupied by portraits of individuals representing diverse periods and facets of Bermudian society. Hanging above the table is an unusual 'chandelier', that in reality, is not a chandelier at all, but a collection of antique tools, some of which, could have been used in making the furniture below.

Up in the Main Gallery you will find another installation, this one showing a 19th Century wedding dress, along with another wedding dress-like creation, which is all bound-up by means of matching straps, as in a straitjacket. The latter is by contemporary artist, Katherine Harriott, who uses this dress to express her view of the way many marriages end up, particularly for women. Between the two dresses, is a grandfather clock, a symbol of the passage of time.

In the Ondaatje wing, there is an unusual display of chairs. Curator and exhibition designers, Sophie Cressell and Will Collieson have hung some of them on the wall, a practice once common with the Shakers, a religious sect known for simple, communal living. This particular display is not as much an installation, as are the two just mentioned, but the chairs, having been displayed in a new context, allows the viewer an opportunity to really look at a chair and see it, perhaps, for some, as never before. Often we walk around half blind, seeing, for example, a chair, but only superficially, as background in the overall arrangement of a room.

In all these installations, the placing of objects in new frames of reference, raises questions that may be important and new, as well as placing the objects in situations that forces us to see them differently.

The BNG is divided into five exhibition spaces, but the genius of the gallery design is that the spaces flow, one into another, in such a way that these spaces are entirely flexible. In this exhibition, there has been an attempt to utilise these different spaces, so as to display four centuries of varying historic styles in something of a logical sequence, but at the same time recognise that the arbitrary division of history into centuries, does not mesh neatly with stylistic changes, which may not, and is probably not, concurrent with the boundaries of particular centuries. The way the galleries flow, one into another, facilitates this complex interflow across such boundaries.

The evolution of the Bermuda style is what this exhibition is all about. Initially, the Island's earliest settlers, who, coming from England, brought with them English tastes, not only in design but also varying skills that would have been practical in 17th Century England. It quickly became necessary, however, to adapt their abilities to an Island that had an entirely different climate, not to mention the lack of any obvious sources of fresh water, as well as new building materials and foodstuffs.

The basic foundation of what we think of as the Bermuda style, was established, largely, over that first century of settlement. Of paramount importance is the development of the unique Bermuda roof. This multi-purpose architectural element, which evolved over the decades of that first century, not only provides shelter, it facilitates the collection of rain water as well. Furthermore, the strength and weight of the roof makes it fairly hurricane proof and its white-washed surface helps divert the heat of the sun, thus keeping buildings cooler.

It was during this same period that we also began to build our notably fast sailing ships, which included the development of what we now call the Bermuda rig, the triangular sail, that is now so common and universal. With this invention, our sailing ships could often outsail traditional square-rigged ships. These two developments, the roof and the sail, are probably are only indigenous art forms.

Why do I consider the roof and the rig art forms? Architecture has traditionally been considered an art. This being so, we must then, also include marine architecture within that framework and thus admit the Bermuda Rig into the realm of art.

Since that first century, there has been an ongoing development of the Bermuda style. It is not a static, frozen concept, but a dynamic and unique development, which gives us a way of life that is often the envy of peoples elsewhere. Although Bermuda may be geographically isolated, as traders, we got about. Thus we were introduced to many ideas from elsewhere, from the Caribbean, North America, Africa, as well as the United Kingdom and elsewhere. These we took and adapted and so that they too, have became part of the Bermuda style.

In this review, I have emphasised our beginnings, however the exhibition does give us an effective overview of all four centuries of Bermudian art, including the few years of our present century. Our beginnings, however, are the bedrock, upon which our cultural development has been built. Having said that, it should not be surprising, given the corrosive nature of our climate, that comparatively few 17th Century artifacts have survived. Not surprisingly, what has come down to us, is mostly that which has been made of more durable materials, such as furniture. One particularly important document, however, and a star in the show, is the Sir George Somers' map of Bermuda.

This exhibition is not a comprehensive one. But given the collections of the BNG and BNT, what they have put together is a splendid survey of what we Bermudians, over time, have wrought. The exhibition includes, important maps, architecture, furniture, silver, fiber arts, paintings, sculpture, photographs, and even a model of a Bermuda rigged ship.

This is an exhibition that every Bermudian should see, especially our students and anyone else interested in Bermudian culture, it is that important. Indeed, it is possibly the most important exhibition the BNG has ever produced.

In holding up to us, a mirror of ourselves, however, it highlights the need for something of this kind, on a more permanent basis. We all need to be better informed about who we are and what we have accomplished over time. This calls for greater support and indeed, the enlargement of the Bermuda National Gallery, so that something of this nature will always be available, for everyone.

The exhibition continues through December 23.