This project focuses on the representation of sociopolitical and security turbulence in Haiti through the artworks exhibited at the 277th Exhibition at the Centre d’art in Port-au-Prince. This serves as a pertinent example of cultural reparation, focusing on the notion of “relation”, a concept developed by Édouard Glissant to redefine the relationships and imaginaries of peoples. The goal of this research is to assess, through an interpretative approach combining iconographic and iconological, and diachronic and synchronic analysis, how certain artworks simultaneously reflect and contest the disorder caused by gang violence and the suffering inflicted on individuals, both in Haiti and elsewhere. More specifically, it will examine how these works imitate the phenomenon of bwa kale (a form of popular resistance to violence) and portray the various actors involved in the current security crisis. These works will be analysed in relation to various media, such as literary texts, digital arts, and influencers’ videos. The study aims to evaluate the impact of security turbulence on the country and its inhabitants and explore whether these artistic productions can mitigate the suffering caused by violence and contribute to initiatives for reparation and social reconstruction in a country experiencing systemic crisis, marked by historical suffering and currently subjected to geopolitical constraints.
PROF. DR. JEAN HÉRALD LEGAGNEUR
CURRICULUM VITAE
A professor at the State University of Haiti since 2008, Jean Hérald Legagneur teaches art history and mythology. He specializes in Haitian and Caribbean Francophone literature and visual arts, with a focus on cultural heritage preservation, identity issues, and cultural studies. He holds a PhD in literature from the University of Virginia and a master’s in philosophy and contemporary cultural criticism from the University Paris 8, in addition to having studied modern literature at the State University of Haiti. From 2017 to 2021, he served as an assistant professor of French and African American studies at the University of Virginia. In 2021, he managed the transfer of collections from the Musée d’Art Haïtien to the Centre d’art in Port-au-Prince. In 2023, he was appointed to the jury at the Haitian Centre d’art for its visual arts creation support program. His fellowship at CURE involves developing a theory of cultural reparation by analyzing artworks from the 277th Centre d’art Exhibition, demonstrating how these pieces reflect the gang violence in Haiti.
