Haiti Now! Art, Film, Literature
St Augustine Haiti Seminar 2006
Dates: Tuesday 15 May to Thursday 17 May 2007
The University of the West Indies, St Augustine, in collaboration with the University of Liverpool announces a three–day seminar on Haitian art, film, and literature. This seminar, to be held at U.W.I. St Augustine, will build on, develop, and diversify the work of the 2004 Haitian bicentenary conference. The seminar will give particular emphasis to contemporary Haitian art, film, and literature, and other aspects of Haitian culture that were not fully discussed in 2004. The following topics give an indication of the range of material to be addressed: Haitian history in contemporary visual arts and film; the Haitian revolution in travel writing; history and politics in literature produced post-2000 (and especially in the period from 2003 to the present: Madison Smartt Bell, Jean Metellus, Fignolé, Sauray, Trouillot, Lahens etc.). Speakers will consist of a mix of scholars, artists, writers, and filmmakers.
Opening with some reflections on the scholarly work that has appeared in the wake of 2004 (e.g. the special issues of Yale French Studies, Small Axe, and Research in African Literatures), the first day of the seminar will feature presentations and discussions from both critics and authors on contemporary Haitian literature. The afternoon session will be devoted to Haitian film, and will include contributions from scholars and filmmakers.
The second day will focus largely on contemporary Haitian literature, with two morning sessions again bringing together leading scholars and authors. The afternoon session will discuss literary representations of the Haitian Revolution, and in particular the American author Madison Smartt Bell's epic trilogy, All Souls' Rising, Master of the Crossroads, and The Stone That the Builder Refused. On the evening of the second day there will be an open–air video/music performance by Haitian artist Maksaens Denis.
The final day's morning sessions will feature presentations on Haitian art by both scholars and contemporary Haitian artists. The artists will present their work, and discussions will focus on themes such as exile, history, and the role of popular culture. The closing session will be a roundtable discussion, which will include all of the artists, authors, and filmmakers. The aim of this session, and of the seminar as a whole, will be to identify and discuss common interests and points of divergence across the spectrum of contemporary Haitian culture. How is Haitian culture renewing itself and adapting to the realities of the twenty first century? How are the longstanding contrasts between exiled artists and those who have remained in Haiti being refigured in the new century? How are questions of gender, history, memory, and popular culture being reconsidered?
Confirmed speakers
Mario Benjamin
Christopher Cozier
J. Michael Dash
Maxence Denis
Edouard Duval Carrié
Charles Forsdick
Yanick Lahens
Maximilien Laroche
Martin Munro
Marie José N'Zengou Tayo
Nick Nesbitt
Jerry Philogène
Barbara Prézeau Stephenson
Madison Smartt Bell
Lyonel Trouillot
Elizabeth Walcott–Hackshaw
Organizers: UWI: Dr. Elizabeth Walcott–Hackshaw (ewalcotthackshaw@fhe.uwi.tt); Dr. Martin Munro (mmunro@fhe.uwi.tt); University of Liverpool: Professor Charles Forsdick (C.Forsdick@liverpool.ac.uk).
Entry to all events is free, though places are limited and early registration is strongly advised.
For more information, please contact any of the organizers.
N.B. programme may be subject to minor alterations.