Deft Strokes

Talk to most CEOs and you’ll probably find that they are articulate on the hard stuff: the local bank’s liquid position, the stock exchange and who’s moving up or down the corporate ladder. But what about the softer corporate side, like  art, for instance ? Claudius Dacon, CEO at Colonial Life Insurance Company of Trinidad and Tobago (Clico) knows a bit of both.  Not only can he  talk about his company’s energy mutual fund strategy but can also talk about how invaluable art and artists are to a country. “Art belongs  to the people, even the ones who can’t afford to go to the galleries,” he said in an interview in his office at Clico headquarters on St Vincent Street. This is one of the reasons why the insurance giant has gone ahead and staged its own art exhibition on the ground floor of the building. All the works exhibited have been done by the revered Boscoe Holder. Some of the artist’s paintings have already been sold.

Dacon’s favourite piece ? He answers off the bat : Girl with a Jug. He seemed a bit offended when asked why the company chose Holder as its first artist. “After Cazabon, Holder is the most renowned and respected artist in Trinidad and Tobago,” he said. The public response has so far been good and has decided to extend the exhibition for another two weeks. “The decison to invest in art was a good decision,” he said, noting that it always wanted to push the corporate envelope. He said Clico felt  “guilty” about adorning the walls of executive offices with Caribbean art, adding that the company wanted to change this. The gallery, he said, was intended to make art available to the people, adding that Clico’s base is made up of clients from the middle and low income groups. As part of its own strategy to make art available to the people, the company will have as part of its own e-commerce website,  a portal to Caribbean art. “We did not want another bland insurance site,” he said, noting that the company felt it needed something to anchor it. The e-link to Caribbean art should do just that, he said, adding that there is a diverse range of artists that people knew nothing about.

It was the company’s executives who voted to have Caribbean art included as part of the website, Dacon said. The website, he said, is a chance for people to go and view art done by Caribbean artists. Those who want to purchase any pieces will be afforded the opportunity to do so. “There is no place to go to find out about the work of Caribbean artists, their life and perspectives,” Dacon said. Asked whether he thought art was going to become part of people’s investment portfolios, Dacon said art was always a good investment, noting that like any good investment it appreciates over time. He noted though that most people collected art simply to appreciate it. He said right now the company was negotiating contractual arrangements with artists across the Caribbean as a step to having their works displayed. In some cases, the company will be purchasing some works and getting the rights to display others, Dacon said. He acknowledged  that the company can claim the art pieces as tax relief, “but we have gone far beyond what we can claim.”

Clico has put its money where its mouth is. The company has about 200 pieces of art in its possession, and an art calender that was started 13 years ago. There is also the prestigious Clico art competition open to artists throughout the Caribbean. The 12 winners were given $US20, 000 each. He stressed though that for Clico, it  was not really about the money. It’s gone way beyond that, he said. He says he is aware though that when an artist dies, the price of his work appreciates considerably. For many, the calenders have become collector’s items, some even have them framed. Asked about the value of the art owned by the company, Dacon said Clico never sought to get a market value for the pieces. In his office on the wall sits pieces by St Lucian artist E Etienne and local painter Carol Soolum. The company paid US$27,000 and $US20,000 respectfully. “You want good art, you have to pay for it,” he said.