In this talk, acclaimed Haitian artist Fran莽ois Cauvin and University of Glasgow researcher Dr Rachel Douglas will be in conversation. They will discuss the iconic portraiture of Haiti鈥檚 rebel women and men and the visual aftershocks of the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) in contemporary Haitian art particularly during the current moment of 鈥渆nsekirite鈥 political and social violence. Cauvin will explore how his family history intersects with Haitian history and sites of memory including some of the Haitian Revolution鈥檚 main battlefields. Cauvin will discuss his and other Haitian families鈥 migration to Montreal, Canada during the dictatorship of Fran莽ois 鈥淧apa Doc鈥 and Jean-Claude 鈥淏aby Doc鈥 Duvalier (1957-1986) and its long aftermath.
Fran莽ois Cauvin is an acclaimed Haitian artist based in Montreal. His iconic portrait of Toussaint Louverture with a guinea fowl forming his hat is the cover image of Sudhir Hazareesingh鈥檚 Black Spartacus: The Epic Life of Toussaint Louverture. The famous portrait has now travelled far and wide as this book won the Wolfson Prize, the UK鈥檚 most prestigious history prize. Recently he has completed portraits of Haiti鈥檚 revolutionary women, including Sanite Belair and Marie-Jeanne Lamartini猫re. With funding from the Glasgow Knowledge Exchange Fund, Cauvin will speak with Rachel Douglas at UK museums and the Houses of Parliament on the topic 鈥淰isual Aftershocks of the Haitian Revolution.鈥
Rachel Douglas is Reader in French and Comparative Literature at the University of Glasgow. She is the author of two books:听Making The Black Jacobins: C. L. R. James and the Drama of听History (Duke University Press, 2019) and听Frank茅tienne and Rewriting:听A听Work in Progress听(Lexington Books, 2009). Her research is on Caribbean literature, history, film, visual art, and archives with a focus on Haiti. She has been awarded Research Fellowships from the Leverhulme Trust, Royal Society of Edinburgh and Arts and Humanities Research Council and grants from the British Library Endangered Archives Programme and the Prince Claus Fund.
Organised by Dr Rachel Douglas (University of Glasgow) and Dr Esther Chadwick (The 91自拍).听
