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CARIBBEAN PLAYGROUND (1952) To The Bottom
La Pearl (the pearl) was a slum area in the shadow of the capitol city of San Juan, Puerto Rico. In 1950, Clark was in San Juan visiting a couple of artists whom he had known in Philadelphia. They headed a graphic 'arts and audio-visual department in the excellent education division.
That summer a Yale drama student from Puerto Rico has making plans to shoot a-documentary-film of The Pearl community. He invited Clark to observe with him at the entrance of The Pearl just off the highway, there was a semi-circular place before groups of shacks there were no streets. The houses here on five foot poles. Clark and his friend wandered under the houses among the pigs, skinny chickens and dogs until they could see ocean spray.
Down along the ocean the children here playing, they here survivors of the moment and seemed wise to the world. The drama student would engage them in Spanish and slip Clark a camera. They soon became oblivious to Claude Clark recording their activities on black and white film. The children here curious and excited about the sea and seashore. They chattered and darted about looking into sink holes and tide pools; anxiously looking to see what the ocean had tossed upon the beach. Clark said: "obviously it was impossible to do any painting in La Pearl, but the years later at Talladega College, the painting "Caribbean Playground" was one of the results of that experience.
The original painting, is now apart of the Jonathan Green Collection.
Revised: August 22, 1998.
Copyright © 1997 by Vai Prints & Publications.
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