This handsome, modernist bust we believe is the first work of this important Jamaican sculptor to come to auction. Both his 1955 Banana Man and his 1962 Boysie wood carvings are in the collection of the National Gallery of Jamaica. In addition, his wood carving of Head was used on the Jamaican 25 cents postage stamp, issued in 1984.
Born in St. Andrew, Jamaica, Marriott began working as a furniture maker and carver in the 1930s. He received a scholarship from the British Council in 1947 to enroll at Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts in London. There, Marriott received his first formal art training; he made such an impression that he was retained as a lecturer for the following academic year. He then taught at the Jamaica School of Arts and Crafts from 1955-61. Marriott left this position when he accepted a commission to create the 1962 monumental bronze statue The Athlete, inspired by Arthur Wint, winner of Jamaica's first Gold Medal in 1948.
