Nadal Walcot: Artist from San Pedro de Macoris
Nadal Walcot (1945 – June 18, 2021) was born in San Pedro de Macoris, a province of the Dominican Republic, located in the south-eastern region of the country. His roots extend from Saint Martin and the Saint Kitts and Nevis islands in the Caribbean.
A self-taught artist, Nadal was first inspired by the caricatures and homemade wooden toys created by an uncle. He remembers trying to copy his uncle's work at a young age. His later influences include the Dutch graphic artist M. C. Escher, whose work he encountered while a political exile in Europe.
His works usually involve a narration of "the daily life, the myths and the culture of his people, the cocolos." Cocolos is a term used in the Dominican Republic for immigrants who are descendants of African slaves from the English islands of the Caribbean, such as Saint Martin, who have come to the country to work in the sugarcane industry since the end of XIX century.
Nadal Walcot is a founder of the Casa de la Cultura (House of Culture) of San Pedro de Macoris, a member of the Association of Fine Artists of the Dominican Republic, and a founding member of the Association of Latin American Artists of Quebec.
