“I don’t want to defined by the colour of my skin” — Young artist exhibits colourful artwork

BY SELINA McCALLUM

Marley Berot cannot imagine a life without colour, and that shows in all of her paintings.

Berot’s artwork is currently being exhibited at A Different Booklist now until January 31^st, 2020.

“I love using colour to express any sort of feeling or mood, or just a vibe in general,” said Berot.

Berot started getting serious about her art near the end of high school. She currently attends George Brown College to further develop her skills as an artist.

It was a hard time in her life, so painting was an outlet she used to heal.

“It helped me to express things that I couldn’t really express with words. If I wanted to use more red in a painting, maybe I was feeling more anxious that day. Or use blue if I was feeling tired,” said the young artist.

All of Berot’s paintings were captivating and held my gaze for a while. Her use of acyclic paint on the canvas showed that each brush stroke was carefully thought out. The features on the faces she painted resemble beautiful black women. The colours surrounding the face popped out and brought the painting to life.

“I don’t have a preference when I paint a black woman or a white woman, or a male or female. A lot of people ask me why I don’t paint more prominently black women. I paint what I like, and I want that to be my message. That’s why the name of the exhibit is More Than One Colour,” said Berot. “You can tell she’s a black woman because of her features, but there’s more than one colour. She’s not defined by the colour of her skin.”

Berot hopes to start her own business in the next few years using her art skills.

“I take thrifted jean jackets and I paint on the back of them. I used to be in fashion, but I realized how bad fashion is for the environment so this recycling of the clothes helps with the environment,” said Berot.

Marley describes her favourite painting hanging up against the wall at a Different Booklist.

“The one of the woman lying down, that’s actually a self-portrait. It may not look exactly like me; it’s a little more expressive. The name of the painting is Sunday Afternoon. It’s the feeling I get when I’m sleeping on a Sunday afternoon for no particular reason. It’s just very tranquil and peaceful,” said Berot. “I should be doing homework, but I’m not because I’m sleeping.”

In the painting, Berot’s bright red silk head wrap is falling off her curly pixie cut. It’s that kind of Sunday afternoon where nothing matters, and the world just stops while you sleep.

Berot is not the only artist in her family, as her father, Anthony Berot is a photographer, videographer and creative media specialist. He is also a proud photographer and media partner for the CaribbeanTales International Film Festival and a producer of the Toronto Caribbean Carnival.

“My father does photography here sometimes and he connected me with the woman who runs A Different Booklist,” said Berot.

The exhibit, titled More Than One Colour has many meanings to Berot.

“Right now specifically, I feel like the world is looking at the colour of people’s skin, and it’s frustrating at times. When I get commissioned for something, they’ll talk to me about black history, but that’s not all that I am,” said Berot.

The young artist is truly a unique individual, finding her own voice through the use of colours.

“I don’t want to be defined by the colour of my skin, that’s one side of the meaning of More Than One Colour. The other side is that I just really like colour,” said Berot.

Berot’s artwork will be exhibited at A Different Booklist between January 11^th and January 31^st, 2020.