As a child, it was the Aquarium and the beach in Bermuda that enthralled New Yorker Akili Tommasino.

Three of his mother’s siblings moved here from St Vincent & the Grenadines in the Seventies.

As the curator of modern and contemporary art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, it was the art that interested him.

On a visit in 2023, he had his aunt, Thelma Providence, a Bermuda resident, introduce him to Jennifer Phillips, the BNG executive director.

A relationship with the BNG was born.

Last month, he and Julie Crooks, curator, arts of global Africa and the diaspora at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, were jurors for the 2026 Biennial.

“I was especially proud to have been invited here by Ms Phillips to serve as a co-juror, particularly because of my family connections and my understanding that a lot of Bermudian culture is influenced by the Caribbean,” Mr Tommasino said.

The Biennial showcases diverse, high-standard works by local and resident artists to foster contemporary art in Bermuda.

Just getting here had some unexpected hurdles for the jurors.

Early last month, on their way to Bermuda, they were delayed by a snowstorm.

“We lost a day,” Mr Tommasino said. “We used that time to look at art submitted digitally.”

They had already been studying Bermuda history and culture and the BNG’s permanent collection, but felt the extra day made them even more prepared.

When they finally reached Bermuda and were able to view submissions in person, they found that the best work naturally rose to the top.

“Our job was really more about composing those selections and less than about imposing a theme,” Mr Tommasino explained.

This was Dr Crooks’s first visit, but she feels a connection to islands such as Bermuda because her mother was originally from Barbados.

“I was intrigued by the idea of Bermuda and curious about its art scene,” Dr Crooks said. “I wanted to know what the connection was to the Caribbean and its art. That was an interesting revelation for me and part of the reason I was so thrilled to be part of this process.”

Dr Crooks said although Bermuda is not Caribbean, the Caribbean influences are absolutely there in the language, the history and the broader Atlantic.

“The connections are there and they are rising to the top through artistic expression,” she said.

Mr Tommasino said proof that they did a good job with their selections for the exhibition will be the approval of his Bermudian family. He wants them to see themselves in the show.

He said the BNG’s Biennial is unique, in his experience, especially in format.

“I have juried many exhibitions in the United States,” he said. “The call has never been specifically to the population of a place like Bermuda. The show is really about Bermuda and Bermuda art history.”

Dr Crooks said the timing of the Biennial makes it a snapshot of Bermuda art over the last two years.

The judges found that Bermudians are just as concerned about the global chaos as other people in the world.

“There is also an international component to this because Bermudians living abroad can submit work,” Mr Tommasino said.

The jurors also found that the younger generation of Bermudian artists were doing exciting things.

The duo spent part of their time assessing the BNG’s permanent collection.

“Examining the collection further solidified the idea that this new generation of artists doesn’t come from nowhere,” Dr Crooks said. “They did not just appear. There is a trajectory and a history. It is always good to connect those histories.”

She said there would always be divergence, but there was also a shared history among the artists.

“That is really something to celebrate and acknowledge,” Dr Crooks said. “That is why you have national museums.”

Mr Tommasino learnt a lot through exploring the BNG’s permanent collection.

“For example, I always thought of Norman Lewis as an American artist,” he said. “I did not know he had Bermudian parents.”

Mr Lewis was a key figure in the American abstract expressionist movement.

The Biennial will open at the BNG on September 26.

The exhibition was supposed to open earlier in the year, but was bumped forward in the schedule because of the extended stay of From Pencil to Puppet: The Art of Michael K. Frith, which will now run through August.