Colleagues at work
Yesterday, Sunday, while the majority of visiting artists went to Wahoo Bay for a well-earned restful day at the beach, several of us stayed back in atelier Shango to complete work. Shango is a former bar space downstairs the dining area at Ibo Lele; it suited us well as a studio – open, airy and with a stunning vista of the town. At one point there was spontaneous dancing, in response to the music that gave us all energy to go on, but for the most part, we were relatively quiet, absorbed in our individual work.
Forty years ago, the Sans Soleil school or style of painting promoted the strength of the spiritual culture of Haiti, helping to firmly place the country on the artistic map of the world. Creators of the New Sans Soleil movement (1998) include Richard Nesly, Prospere Eriveaux, Maxan Jean Louis and Edouard Martial. These four artists participated at this year’s edition of the Promart Haiti art camp, and have become close colleagues of mine. So I was very pleased when Nesly and Martial complimented me both on my canvasses and other work generated during the camp, saying that my work had a strong ‘Sans Soleil’ feel to it. Praise indeed!
Extra work generated during the camp – strong Sans Soleil feel
This afternoon was selection day, and the committee gave us the benefit of holding the selection after lunch to give us time for final touches. Great! I had time to create a small series of new works for exchange with my Haitian colleagues. A sudden flurry of activity meant that selection was underway, by country of origin. When ‘Grenade’ was called, Andrea was up first. Waiting her turn, she looked tired, but serene, and could not protest when I took her photo. Her piece depicting Grenada’s national colours was chosen for the final exhibition. My turn. Of my five piece series on Petion Ville, the committee chose my yellow/ochre ‘Petion Ville Daytime,’ for the final exhibition. By 5pm we both retired to our room for a drink and a snack of Haitian confectionary. Andrea had a form of peanut brittle, and I had the cashew version – chunks of whole roasted nuts in an anise-ginger spiced brittle. Yum Yum. Looking back on the past 12 days, we are happy we came, are pleased with our accomplishments, and the new friends we’ve made. This time tomorrow, Tuesday 2 December, the final exhibition of the 3rd International Atelier d’art will open at the mayor’s office/town hall in Petion Ville, and the artists, sponsors, guests and the public will get to see what we’ve been up to.
An exhausted but elated Andrea, and her work