Laughter bubbles readily and often from Bill Ming?s throat, and tears are easily summoned, for within his soul there flows a deep, spiritual river that drives his emotions to meld what he sees as the twin forks of his roots: Africa and Bermuda.

Being enormously conscious of the cultural divide which separated those two worlds during his formative years here, the Bermudian artist has long been on a creative journey which expresses those roots through his art ? a story he is anxious to share with his fellow Bermudians. Thus it is that on Saturday, October 1 Bermuda will have an opportunity to absorb this artist?s uniqueness and celebrate his talent through an inspiring solo exhibition at the Bermuda National Gallery entitled ?From Ship to Shore?.

?My work is my roots, and the exhibition is a statement of where I am at the moment,? Mr. Ming says. ?Even though I was born here, I had to leave Bermuda to form my culture; to be able to bring it back and say, ?Listen, this is part of the signpost. This is my story.? I am trying to continue the journey. The story is never-ending, and I am continually evolving my work.?

Indeed, it was in 1971 that the young Bermudian, who remembers his earlier years as ?always being in trouble?, arrived in Liverpool, England on a mission to free himself from what he terms ?the Island?s narrowness? and grow both as a human being and as an artist.

?I couldn?t branch out here, and I wasn?t ready for that. I needed a bigger space, and I found it in Britain,? he says of the transition. ?When I left, it was a time of confusion and upheaval in my life.?

But if Mr. Ming was ready for Britain, initially it wasn?t quite ready for him.

?Why do you want to be here?? Immigration officials demanded.

?I just want to go to college and learn,? the young man responded. To the ensuing barrage of questions, he finally exclaimed in exasperation: ?Look, I don?t want the crown jewels, somebody else as got them.?

Heading first for London, he didn?t stay long, but journeyed instead to Nottingham where the college of his choice told him, ?Sorry, we can?t take you, but there is a little school down the road called Mansfield. They take anybody in.?

Far from being insulted, Mr. Ming said, ?This is for me?, and off he went. Duly accepted, he drew great inspiration from its principal, Peter Johnson, who also became a friend and even best man at the Bermudian?s wedding to Nadia, an art teacher.

?I needed somebody to believe in me, and that was Mr. Johnson. He was a great guy, and one of the reasons I am still in Britain,? he says. ?It was one of the best things that happened to me. I am an artist and I fitted right in. It was nice to find a lot of crazy people like me.?

Indeed, fame if not fortune was just around the corner. Not only was Bill (Mussey) Ming the first recipient of the prestigious Henry Moore Fellowship in Sculpture, which is given to an artist ?whose work is rooted within a non-Eurocentric perspective, highlighting ways in which cultural crossovers can be a catalyst for innovation and development?, but also he went on to earn a degree in Sculpture and Creative Writing from Maidstone College of Art in Kent.

?I got my degree in creative writing, photography, etching, book binding, print making and sculpture,? he says proudly.

Since then he has had one-man shows and joint exhibitions at several well-known British museums, galleries and institutions, lectured at the Loughborough College of Art, and had his work featured on radio and TV in England.

His last Bermuda show, ?Coming Home?, in 1994 ? also at the Bermuda National Gallery ? was visited by the Queen, to whom he was presented.

Over the years Mr. Ming has combined creating art with teaching it. In fact, he is the only Bermudian in an itinerant group of sculptors from India, Africa and Trinidad who travel around Britain giving short courses to school children.

A similar mission found him teaching in Soweto, South Africa for a time ? an experience which proved as gut-wrenching as it was inspirational.

?As soon as I got there I just cried,? he recalls. ?As far as my eyes could see, it was a shanty town. I wasn?t used to the poverty, but the Africans seemed to have a knack of getting over things and moving on.?

Then, as now, the gifted Bermudian had a special knack of conveying his passion for art, opening the children?s eyes to the wonders of creativity, and teaching them to think for themselves. Small wonder, then, that he remains a proven ?winner? with his young students wherever he goes.

?Bill, I want to go to England and work like you,? a Soweto child pleaded.

?Bill, I wish you were my dad,? said another in England.

?Art is part of empowering children and teaching them how to get their expressions down,? Mr. Ming says. ?I might take a piece of sculpture and have them pair off and tell me what they think it is, or make up a story about my work. That is where the learning starts because they are actually starting to think for themselves.?

Saying that he ?went to Europe to find Africa?, Mr. Ming explains that it was the discovery of so many African artefacts and cultural aspects in British museums which launched his on-going journey of enlightenment. Today, he thinks in terms of ?a rainbow culture? ? which is amply borne out by his multi-hued, multi-ethnic work.

?All of my pieces are showing the same thing over and over. We need more of the same to make us community.

?Like many African artists, I am a woodcarver and a storyteller, and I share my visions and messages with a multi-cultural village that links instinct and early impressions with a contemporary western perspective formed through my education and experience,? is how Mr. Ming sums it all up.

He also speaks of frequently experiencing what he says the Africans call ?fused oneness? ? a meeting of the spiritual and material worlds ? particularly when working with wood.

?The tree is saying that I am becoming a part of it, and the tree is becoming a part of me. It happens on your own day and at a certain time.?

In fact, while he works in various media, wood is this carver?s favourite ?because of the nature of the beast? ? something visitors to his exhibition will find self-evident, and truly magical in its diverse execution.

?My work is from my roots. A child could come here and understand it,? he says, surveying the compelling collection which represents 34 years of artistic exploration, growth and development. ?People say my work is very, very different. People follow trends, but I hate the idea of trends. My heart is not about trends. It is a living force within me, and that is what drives me.?

As fascinating and original as Mr. Ming?s work is, however, he regards none of it as sacrosanct. Breaking pieces up and recycling their parts into new works is all part of his modus operandi.

?You have to burn bridges,? he says. ?I am an artist, so I strip back, get back to basics.?

Even so, some of his pieces end up as sculptures or embellishments in and around the grounds of the family home in Newark-on-Trent in the English midlands, where they prove an endless source of fascination to his neighbours, and particularly the children.

?They all think I?m crazy, but they love it,? the father of one laughs.

While ?From Ship to Shore? may be deceptively simple on one level, it is certainly not of the ?drive-by? variety popular with those on the waning end of a parking voucher. Rather, it draws the viewer into an intriguing and unusual world that cries out for time to study and absorb its many, multi-cultural wonders ? and indeed to marvel at the creative capacity of the human brain, and Bill Ming?s in particular.

?Whether on stormy or calm seas, fellow travellers are essential for this life excursion. As the captain says, ?All are welcome aboard?.?

Mr. Ming launches the Bermuda National Gallery?s new Lunchtime Lecture Series today at 12.30 p.m. Admission is free and all are welcome. ?Ship to Shore? opens to the public on Saturday, October 1 and continues through January 6, 2006. For further details see the Bermuda Calendar.

His commissioned bronze sculpture, ?Figurehead?, commemorating the lives of Bermudians lost at sea, will be unveiled at Great Head Park, St. David?s in October.