Butterfly Resistance: Haiti
Opening: 15 May 2024, 6pm
Exhibition: 15 May – 21 July 2024
Curators: Katarzyna Prokesz and Maria Prokesz
The exhibition will be open Tuesday – Sunday between 12pm and 7pm.
Spirituality present in several aspects of Haitian social life – religion, collectivity, political engagement or contact with nature – is the central theme of the exhibition. Providing the Polish audience with a context and a more familiar point of view, the exhibition showcases works by contemporary Polish artists alongside Haitian works, as well as pieces from the Galeria Studio collection. They illustrate similar phenomena present in this culture without referring directly to Haiti; illustrating, for instance, the themes of dance, ritual and the power of collective action, we present works strongly associated with religion, in particular Haitian vodou, as well as a more secular perspective of traditional Polish folk dances.
The most obvious international encounter occurs between Poland and Haiti, but at the same time Haitian works, especially those relating to history and politics, frequently refer to colonialism (historical links with France and, from today’s perspective, relations with the United States). We have invited several Haitian artists living in the diaspora, whose works address elements of Haitian tradition and culture from a modern, and often broader – almost global – perspective. The local Haitian perspective is present in works painted in Haiti at the turn of the 21st century which are currently in Polish collections.
Artists: Sergine André / Paweł Baśnik / Wesner Bazile / Karolina Breguła / Thermidor Buffon / Jean-Ulrick Désert / Jan Dobkowski / Préfète Duffaut / Lochard Duval / André Eugène / Lafortune Félix / Pascal Fleurantin / Krzysztof Franaszek / Sasha Huber / Saincilus Ismaël / Piotr Janas / Jean-Baptiste Jean Joseph / Katarzyna Korzeniecka / Paul Lionel (O’Nel) / Vil Mackenzy / Ramphis Magloire / Ronald Mevs / Pascale Monnin / Jean Monrose / André Normil / Ernst Payen / André Pierre / Jacques Pierre (Ti Boubout) / Augustin Pierre Sylvain (Payas) / Prospère II Redji / Petri Saarikko / Louisianne Saint Fleurant / Jonasz Stern / Iza Tarasewicz / Nkulu V. de Paul / Olga Wolniak / Frantz Zéphirin
