LE CENTRE D’ART > About Us
Le Centre d’Art is a public interest institution founded in 1944. A cradle for Haitian art, it has helped several generations of renowned artists from Hector Hyppolite to Edouard Duval Carrié.
Historically,Le Centre d’Art has simultaneously been an educational center, gallery and reference institution for the promotion of Haitian art. The earthquake on January 12, 2010 severely affectedLe Centre d’Art. After the collapse of the building and the death of its director, the site remained closed for four years.
In November 2014, Le Centre d’Art reopened its doors for its 70th anniversary with a temporary layout. Since then, the institution has started to work once again with the public and artists. We are also working on enhancing the Center’s heritage (collection, archives) and developing a total reorganization project for the future.
Our Mission
Le Centre d’Art remains faithful to its original mission and continues to improve it in order to adapt to contemporary issues:
> Find, educate and mentor Haitian artists. Identify talent, enable creation and circulate it for the benefit of the entire art world.
> Document and display Haiti’s significant visual arts heritage. Offer quality access to Haitian art to both the public and professionals.
ACTU > OPEN CALL | Artist-in-Residence at NLS, Jamaica
Le Centre d’Art is setting up a synergy project for artistic creation and artistic analysis in the Caribbean, thanks in particular to UNESCO’s International Fund for Cultural Diversity (IFDC).
The project Implementation of a Network for the Creation and Dissemination of Caribbean Art, aims at creating a link between Haiti and Caribbean places of creation, and to promote the practices of Caribbean artists, especially women, to strengthen the Haitian cultural sector. For two years, artistic residencies will be set up, and will end with an exhibition and a widely distributed publication.
THEME
“The ability of humans to participate intelligently in the evolution of their own system is dependent on their ability to perceive the whole” Immanuel Wallerstein
Toussaint L’Ouverture, Jean Price Mars, Aimé Césaire, Marcus Garvey, Frantz Fanon, Derek Walcott Long is the list of illustrious men who have shaped the Caribbean countries as we know them today. What about Caribbean women? University theses on the role of women are rising but they are not taken for the general public. Art has the power to make accessible fundamental values and principles, which are too often convoluted. This project aims at highlighting the role of women in the construction of the Caribbean.
ABOUT THE RESIDENCY – from June 1st to 30th, 2020
For this segment of the residency programme, NLS/Edna Manley College will host one artist from Haiti or its diaspora for one month in Jamaica.
Le Centre d’Art will fully bear the costs of residency. The artist will be provided with a workspace, tools and supplies and housing. In addition, the artist will receive per diem to cover all food and transportation expenses throughout the residency. The ticket and the visa will also be covered by Le Centre d’Art.
TERMS OF APPLICATION – Residency in Haiti, June 1st to 30th 2020
This call for applications to attend a residency at NLS/Edna Manley College in Jamaica is opened to any woman artist from Haiti or its diaspora.
The call targets exclusively the field of visual arts (such as painting, sculpture, film and photography). The artist may practice multiple forms of artistic production.
The deadline to submit the application is before April 12th, 2019. For further information on the terms, please click HERE.
CLASSES & ACTIVITIES > Monotype Workshop with KILLY
The monotype is a printing process that eschews engraving and etching techniques and only produces one single copy. It is done by painting typographic ink onto a non-porous material like glass, metal or Plexiglas. These three-hour workshops take place over the course of one month.
Saturday, october 24 and 31, november 7 and 14, 2015 from 9 am to 12 pm
Patrick Ganthier, aka, KILLY
Artist and sculptor, Killy worked intensely on engraving when he was living in Montreal. He represented Haiti in the Venice Biennial and regularly exhibits abroad. Upon his return to Haiti, we are delighted that he has chosen to share his experiences and expertise at the Center.
Ages 14 years and older
Maximum number of spots: 25 people
Material entirely provided for by the Center
HTG 500 for annual registration to the Center
HTG 4,000 for the total duration of the workshop (4 classes)
THE HAITIAN ART GATEWAY > ST. ELOI Lionel
Lionel St. Eloi was born in 1950 in Port-au-Prince and grew up in the “Carrefour Feuilles” neighborhood where he still lives today. After having first cut his artistic “teeth” on ceramics, drawing and painting at Poto Mitan, he was introduced to Le Centre d’Art in 1972 where he took classes with Antonio Joseph, Franck Louissant and participated in life at the Center.
At first he dedicated himself to painting, but towards the 1990s, due to the lack of painting material because of the embargo, he started to explore salvaged sculpture and used materials like aluminum, old metal files, barbed wire, used parts, forks, flowers, jewelry, etc. His sculptures, often inspired by mystic elements are a unique genre, and quickly gave him international recognition.
His works have been exhibited internationally, in particular at the Grand Palais, the Abbaye de Daoulas, the Halle Saint-Pierre, the Fowler Museum, the Ramapo College Art Gallery, the Musée du Montparnasse, the Outsider Art Fair of NY and the Arco in Madrid. His work is part of the permanent collections at the Waterloo Museum, Le Centre d’Art and the Musée d’Art Haïtien du Collège Saint-Pierre.
