Haiti's Men Nou Gallery Brings Post-Earthquake Rubble Art to Miami

January 29, 2011
Ruth Goldman and Ira Lowenthal, owners of Men Nou Gallery in Petionville Haiti, have curated an exhibit at MiMo Art Gallery and Custom Framing on NE 79th St that highlights post-earthquake art by select Haitian painters, sculptors and flag makers. The show, which runs through February 14, also features large-scale canvases by the renowned muralist Jerry Rosembert Mose. Among the prominent contemporary painters represented are Maxan Jean-Louis, Magda and Ramphis Magloire – all well-known acolytes of the St. Soleil school of Haitian art. A group of younger artists from Jacmel present their immediate response to the earthquake in the form of “rubble art” – a new medium of therapeutic and artistic expression that has already been featured in the New Yorker on-line and as a featured segment on Public Radio International (PRI).

Large-scale post-quake beaded flags depicting not only the horrors of the disaster but also the divine interventions of Haiti’s ancestral spirits to save lives during the event are a prominent part of the exhibit. Featured contemporary beaded textile artists will include Mireille Dlism, Evelyne Alcide, Roudy Azor and Nadine Fortilus. Classic works by Wilson Bigaudv (Petit-Gove) and Louisiane St. Fleurant (Port-au-Prince/St. Soleil) round out the collection of two-dimensional plastic arts. The next generation of Haitian artists are also represented, through the works of Timoun Rezistans (“Children of Resistance”) – a collective of young artists from 8 to 18 years of age hailing from the slums of the destroyed capital, whose phantasmagoric cut-out appliqus from recycled tires are a fresh, new development on the Haitian art scene. Finally, fine handcrafts produced since the quake by artisans struggling to survive amidst the rubble and under torn tents, including works in bone, horn, wood, cut metal and recycled packaging materials, are available. Go see the artwork at 738 NE 79th Street. For questions or inquiries, contact Ruth Goldman at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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