To Shoot Hard Labour

By Dr. Jerry Simon

September 20 2026 | Art Review

This week we are looking at another artwork that portrays the heritage and culture of Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean. It is called “To Shoot Hard Labour” and it was painted by Haitian born, Antiguan artist, Ronald Silencieux.

The painting features a man riding a donkey in the rural village of John Hughes in Antigua. Although this scene is much more uncommon than the past, it has not totally disappeared. And on a Caribbean off-road, especially in the agricultural districts, you may be lucky to see a farmer or vendor on his donkey.

In the words of the artist: “I admire this man’s hard work. He goes up a hill past me every morning in John Hughes to go into the forest to look for wattle sticks to sell. Every day, I watch him with his donkey going up and back. I thought it would have made a wonderful painting to capture him on his donkey.”

I must agree with Ronald. It is indeed a wonderful painting. Made in an expressionist, semi-fauvist style, the man and the donkey are rendered using dynamic streaks of primary and secondary colours – bright yellows, vivid pinks, deep blues, fiery oranges and stark whites. In areas it has the impression of someone splashing paint on the man and donkey. The background provides sharp contrast to the subject with highly saturated, textured greens and earth tones.

The application of the paint is thick and expressive, relying on loose, energetic brush strokes and palette knife marks. This creates an energetic scene that conveys the movement and life of the rural Caribbean.

And while the man is carrying out hard labour, the painting style brings a certain lightness and even jovial quality to the scene.

“To Shoot Hard Labour” also brings back memories of another famous rural-dwelling Antiguan, Papa Sammy (Samuel Smith) whose life and times were captured in a book of the same name. Our culture and heritage continues to live in the works of artist such as Ronald. He continues to capture the resilience of the hardworking people of Rural Antigua.