Valerie Belgrave (3 March 1946 – 23 August 2016) was a

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

artist, painter and author, who also composed music.

Biography

Valerie Belgrave was born and raised in Petit Bourg,

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...

, Trinidad. She attended St Joseph’s Convent,

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

, and continued her education at

Sir George Williams University Sir George Williams University was a university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It merged with Loyola College to create Concordia University on August 24, 1974. History In 1851, the first YMCA in North America was established on Sainte-Hélène S ...

(now Concordia), in Canada, where she obtained a BA degree in painting and literature.

Margaret Busby Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's youngest and first black female book publisherJazzmine Breary"Let' ...

, "Valerie Belgrave", in ''

Daughters of Africa ''Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent from the Ancient Egyptian to the Present'' is a compilation of orature and literature by more than 200 women from Africa and the African diaspora, ...

'', 1992, p. 681."Artist Valerie Belgrave dies"
''TT Whistle Blower'', 24 August 2016. She took part in the 1969 sit-in staged by hundreds of students at the computer lab on the ninth floor of the university in protest against a professor who was accused of racism; the incident, which became the subject of a documentary called ''The Ninth Floor'', is believed to have helped spark the 1970

Black Power Revolution Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have of ...

in Trinidad.Peter Ray Blood
"From young radical to celebrated artist"
''

Trinidad and Tobago Guardian The ''Trinidad and Tobago Guardian'' (together with the ''Sunday Guardian'') is the oldest daily newspaper in Trinidad and Tobago. The paper is considered the newspaper of record for Trinidad and Tobago. History Its first edition was published ...

'', 16 October 2016.Valerie Belgrave,
"Memories Of A Hot Winter: 1970 Retrospective"
''The Caribbean Review'', 3 August 2017. Her writings included the novels ''Ti Marie'' (published in 1988, and described as "a Caribbean ''

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Win ...

'') and ''Dance the Water'' (2002), a play entitled ''Night of the Wolf'' (1991), and the 2007 children's book ''Adventures of the Magic Steelpan'', as well as a photo memoir called ''Art for the People'', launched in 2011."Valerie Belgrave launches 'Art for the People'"
''Trinidad and Tobago Guardian'', 12 December 2011;via ''Repeating Island'', 14 December 2011. She was also a painter and batik designer.

Personal life

She was married to Ian "Teddy" Belgrave (who died in July 2013). She had one son, Chenier Belgrave, who is a designer.

References

External links

* Peter Ray Blood
"From young radical to celebrated artist"
''

'', 16 October 2016. {{DEFAULTSORT:Belgrave, Valerie 1946 births 2016 deaths Trinidad and Tobago women artists Trinidad and Tobago women novelists Trinidad and Tobago novelists 20th-century women writers 20th-century novelists Trinidad and Tobago writers Sir George Williams University alumni Trinidad and Tobago composers Trinidad and Tobago dramatists and playwrights Trinidad and Tobago artists