GUEST COMMENTARY: BY SEAN MCWEENY JR
(EDITOR’S NOTE: I had to share this wonderful Facebook post by Sean McWeeny Jr. with readers of BAHAMAS CHRONICLE as a Guest Commentary.)
NASSAU, Bahamas — Marina D’Aguilar and her husband, Vincent D’Aguilar, were connected in their mutual love for art. They visited countless museums and galleries during their international travels, which they both enjoyed immensely.
They would often select their next travel destination based on a specific artist’s exhibition or an interesting gallery opening. Everywhere they travelled, they educated themselves about the local art scene and sought to view the leading works by recognized artists.
Though they were greatly influenced by international artists and exhibitions, their true passion was collecting Bahamian artwork. Starting in the early 1970’s, the couple decided it was their responsibility to support the visual arts at home. Together, they collected many of the greatest and most unique works of Bahamian art. Today, the D’Aguilar Art Foundation collection includes over 2000 paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures collected by the D’Aguilar family.
EDITOR’S NOTE: A graduate of Queen’s College in Nassau in 1949, D’Aguilar continued his education at the Faraday House Engineering College in London, England, on a Bahamas Electricity Corporation Scholarship. In 1968, having left BEC, D’Aguilar and his brother, Adrian, opened Superwash — now the largest self-service laundromat franchise in the Bahamas. In 1979, the brothers ventured into the hospitality industry and purchased the Dolphin Hotel on West Bay Street, solidifying D’Aguilar’s status as a master of enterprise. (SOURCE: The D’Aguilar Art Foundation)
