Haiti"And"Art:" Curating"
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" " " " " HAITI"AND"ART:" CURATING"THE"NATION"" FOR"INTERNATIONAL"EXHIBITIONS" " " by" " WENDY"ASQUITH" " " " " " " " " " " " " Thesis"submitted"in"accordance"with"the"requirements"of"the"" University"of"Liverpool"for"the"degree"of"" DOCTOR"IN"PHILOSOPHY" " January"2015" ©"Copyright"by"Wendy"Asquith"2015" ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ii!! ! ACKNOWLEDGMENTS" " I"would"like"to"formally"acknowledge"the"support"of"a"number"of"individuals"and"organisations" that"have"supported"me"in"the"completion"of"this"project." " The"research"undertaken"to"produce"this"dissertation"was"generously"funded"by"the"Arts"and" Humanities"Research"Council"(AHRC)"through"their"Collaborative"Doctoral"Award"scheme,"and" thanks"must"first"go"to"them"for"making"this"project"possible."During"the"course"of"this"award"I" was"also"fortunate"enough"to"be"successful"in"applying"to"the"AHRC’s"International"Placement" Scheme"twice,"undertaking"fellowships"at"the"Library"of"Congress"and"The"Huntington"Library."I" am"grateful"to"both"of"these"institutions,"particularly"staff"at"the"Kluge"Center"and"the" Ahmanson"Reading"Room"respectively"for"their"welcome."Additionally"I"was"also"able"to"spend" an"idyllic"summer"as"a"Junior"Fellow"of"the"Terra"Foundation"for"American"Art"at"their"Summer" Residency"Programme"in"Giverny."I"am"grateful"to"the"entire"team"involved"in"organising"this" programme,"which"contributed"significantly"to"my"sense"of"self"as"a"researcher."Finally"I"am" grateful"to"the"British"Federation"for"Women"Graduates"who"kindly"supported"the"completion"of" this"doctoral"project"through"their"grant"programme." " My"doctoral"research"was"undertaken"at"the"University"of"Liverpool"in"collaboration"with"Tate" Liverpool,"and"I"am"grateful"to"both"institutions"for"providing"me"with"the"support"and"resources" to"realise"this"project."Special"thanks"is"reserved"for"my"supervisors"at"the"University"of" Liverpool,"Dr"Dmitri"van"den"Bersselaar"and"Professor"Charles"Forsdick,"for"their"tireless"reading" of"many"drafts"of"this"thesis,"their"insightful"and"encouraging"feedback"and"their"continued" support."I"also"wish"to"thank"my"external"supervisor,"Lindsey"Fryer,"Head"of"Learning"at"Tate" Liverpool,"who"generously"shared"her"extensive"knowledge"of"the"museums"and"galleries"sector" and"welcomed"me"into"her"team"over"the"last"four"years."For"their"thorough,"engaging"and" thoughtful"examination"of"my"thesis,"and"their"supportive"advice"about"development"of"my" academic"career"I"would"like"to"thank"Dr"Diana"Paton"and"Dr"Richard"Huzzey." " I"was"lucky"enough"to"complete"this"thesis"among"a"cohort"of"gifted"postgraduate"students"and" friends"at"the"University"of"Liverpool"whose"company"was"always"stimulating"and"supportive." These"include,"but"are"not"limited"to,"Dr"Lucy"Williams,"Dr"Harry"Wood,"Dr"Angel"Luke"O’Donnell," Dr"Angela"Ballone,"(and"soon"to"be)"Dr"Jonathan"Wilson,"Dr"Andrea"Livesey,"Dr"Emily"Trafford,"Dr" Nick"Bubak"and"Dr"Jack"Webb."The"latter"along"with"Dr"Kate"Hodgson"and"Dr"Raphael"Hoermann" provided"a"small"but"perfectly"formed"community"of"scholars"of"Haiti"in"Liverpool,"a"luxury"in"the" North"West"of"England!"I"also"count"myself"lucky"to"have"been"part"of"the"wider"community"of" scholars"in"the"School"of"Histories"Languages"and"Cultures,"and"Fellows"of"the"Centre"for"the" Study"of"International"Slavery,"jointly"hosted"by"the"University"of"Liverpool"and"International" Slavery"Museum,"which"provided"a"lively"research"culture"throughout"the"period"of"my"doctoral" study." " Thanks"is"also"due"to"various"other"communities"of"researchers"and"practitioners"that"I"have" been"privileged"to"spend"time"amongst"at"different"periods"during"my"doctoral"research."These" include"friends"and"colleagues"at:"the"Terra"Foundation’s"Summer"Residency"in"2011,"the"Kluge" Center"in"2011/12,"the"Huntington"Library"in"2012,"Tate"Liverpool’s"Collaborative"Research" ! iii" ! (CoRe)"group,"and"my"fellow"co[founders"of"the"Regional"Centre"for"American"Studies"(RCAS)" North"West." " I"have"been"lucky"enough"to"take"advantage"of"a"number"of"invitations"to"publish"and"present" my"work"during"the"course"of"this"doctoral"research"and"I"would"particularly"like"to"thank"David" Scott"and"the"editorial"team"at"Small"Axe,"Leon"Wainwright"and"the"editorial"board"at"Open"Arts" Journal,"and"Leah"Gordon,"Alex"Farquarson"and"the"editorial"team"at"Nottingham" Contemporary."Thanks"is"also"due"to"the"Society"for"Caribbean"Studies"in"the"UK,"those"who" organise"the"Caribbean"Research"Seminar"in"the"North"and"Professor"William"Chew"for"his" invitation"to"speak"at"the"Belgium[Luxembourg"American"Studies"Association"Postgraduate" Conference"at"the"U.S."Embassy"in"Brussels." " For"enabling"and"inspiring"my"research"of"historical"and"contemporary"art"of"Haiti"and"its" diaporas"thanks"is"particularly"due"to"those"artists"and"curators"who"have"generously"agreed"to" talk"to"me"about"their"practice"during"the"course"of"this"project."These"include,"but"are"not" limited"to,"Edouard"Duval[Carrié,"Pascale"Monnin,"Tanya"Barson,"Mario"Benjamin,"André" Eugène,"Leah"Gordon,"Jean[Claude"Saintilus,"Barbara"Prézeau,"Guyodo,"Jean"Hérard"Celeur," Giscard"Bouchotte,"Régine"Estimé"and"David"A."Bailey."Thanks"is"also"due"to"all"those"who"shared" their"knowledge"and"expertise"with"me"during"my"recent"research"trip"to"Haiti."" " In"more"recent"times,"my"thanks"is"due"to"colleagues"and"friends"who"I"have"worked"with"as"a" Research"Associate"in"the"Faculty"of"Humanities"and"Social"Sciences"(HSS)"at"the"University"of" Liverpool."To"Professor"Dinah"Birch"and"the"Project"Management"and"Support"Teams"of"the"N8" Research"Partnership’s"New$Thinking$from$the$North"project"and"to"those"involved"with"the" Liverpool"Network"of"Knowledge"Exchange"(LiNK)"Placement"Programme."I"also"owe"deep" thanks"to"my"friends"and"co[conspirators"in"the"HSS"Faculty"Research"and"KE"Office,"these" include"but"are"not"limited"to"Jenny,"Maeva,"Hayley,"Grace,"Chris,"Kate"and"Martina,"always" ready"with"a"cup"of"tea"and"piece"of"cake." " I"want"to"express"my"deep"gratitude"to"Janice"B."Kruger,"Emily"Burns"and"Dennis"and"Liz"Kneier," who"gave"me"much"more"than"places"to"stay"during"my"research"trips"in"Washington"D.C.,"New" York"and"Los"Angeles."I"want"to"thank"all"my"friends"at"Christ"Church"Walton"Breck,"and"more" recently"at"Christ"Church"Linnet"Lane,"whose"small"words"of"encouragement"were"invaluable"to" me"as"I"worked"towards"completion"of"this"project." " Finally"I"want"to"thank"my"family"and"friends."To"my"parents,"June"and"Eric"Asquith,"my"brother," Peter,"my"grandma,"Olga"Shipley,"my"partner,"Gareth"Halsall"and"to"Barbara,"Danielle"and"Mitty." Thank"you"all"for"helping"me"find"the"resolve"to"complete"this"project"and"reminding"me"that" being"a"researcher"is"only"one"part"of"the"rich"life"I"have"been"blessed"with." " " ! iv" WENDY&ASQUITH& ! HAITI&AND&ART:& CURATING&THE&NATION&FOR&INTERNATIONAL&EXHIBITIONS& & ABSTRACT' & This&dissertation&presents&a&fresh&approach&to&the&study&of&Haitian&art&throuGh&research& conducted&in&the&emerGinG&interdisciplinary&field&of&exhibition&history.&In&a&deliberate& attempt&to&move&away&from&existinG¬ions&of&Haitian&art&as&a&formal&or&aesthetic&style&of& art&practice&associated&with&primitivism&–&based&on&midOtwentiethOcentury&art&historical& narratives&–&I&have&opted&to&explore&the&display&of&works&by&Haitian&artists&outside&of& conventional&museum&and&Gallery&settinGs.&TakinG&a&broader&cultural&studies&approach& centred&on&three&case&studies,&I&examine&the&exhibition&of&artworks&within&the&transitory& sites&of&national&cultural&display&at&two&world’s&fairs&and&an&art&biennial:&the&Haitian&pavilion& at&the&World’s&Columbian&Fair&of&1893;&Haiti’s&“Little&World’s&Fair”&officially&titled&Exposition) Internationale)du)Bicentenaire)de)Port4au4Prince&of&1949O50;&and&the&Haitian&pavilion&at&the& Venice&Biennale&in&2011.&& & These&exhibitions&overlap&in&the&sense&that&they&all&claimed&to&present&an&official& representation&of&the&Haitian&nationOstate&and&therefore&an&authoritative&vision&of&Haitian& culture.&However,&when&we&peer&behind&this&veneer&of&official&national&rhetoric&it&becomes& clear&that&at&each&of&these&sites&there&were&numerous&imaGes&of&Haitian&nationhood,&as& well&as¬ions&of&a&national&cultural&essence&referred&to&throuGhout&as&HaitianOness,&being& produced&by&various&agents.&Across&the&course&of&this&study&these&include:&Haitian&and& foreiGn&state&representatives,&curators,&artists,&academics&and&cultural&professionals&drawn& from&Haiti,&Haiti’s&diasporas&and&elsewhere,&as&well&as&NGOs&and&other&international& collaborators.& & In&each&case&those&curatinG&Haiti’s&national&displays&at&these&events&balanced&assertions&of& national&sovereiGnty&aGainst&international&marketability:&delicate&neGotiations&that,&I&arGue,& can&be&discerned&throuGh&analysis&of&the&forms,&aesthetics,&subjects&and&contextualisation& of&the&artworks&displayed.&Across&the&course&of&this&dissertation&therefore&I&chart&a&shift&in& the&substance&of&these&Haitian&cultural&displays,&and&the&artworks&presented&within&them,& from&a&fin&de&siècle&expression&of&Francophile&neoclassicism,&throuGh&an&uneasy&postOwar& couplinG&of&folkloric&exoticism&and&western&modernity,&to&a&fraGmented&picture&of& contemporary&HaitianOness&articulated&with&reference&to&poverty&and&cultural&otherness&as& well&as&cosmopolitanism.& & Through&an&examination&of&these&case&studies&I&have&sought&to&explore&how&the&visual&arts& intersected&with&expressions&of&Haiti’s&postcolonial&nationhood&at&exhibitions&staGed&within& events&scattered&across&the&Atlantic&World.&Further,&by&chartinG&shifts&in&the&production&