ENDEZO/HAITIAN PAINTINGS
These series simultaneously explore the palimpsest quality of the tradition of beaded flags of Haiti and the tradition of self-taught art the island is well known for.
Coming back to Harlem, after a twenty-year hiatus from my early childhood, I became fascinated with the intricate design of the fire-escapes which seem strangely familiar to me. Further research lead me to discover that many of the wrought iron work had been done by blacksmiths who immigrated to the South of the United States from the Caribbean, and whom had then made their way North. The omnipresent fire-escape in or surrounding those visual construct points to their artificiality, symbolically offering an ‘escape’ to the viewer.
Endezo-Between Waters
Haitian Paintings