Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami Celebrated the Opening of “PÒTOPRENS: The Urban Artists of Port-au-Prince”

Photography by Ryan Troy on May 1st, 2019 in Arts, Lifestyle

Miami, FL – April 26, 2019 – The Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami (MOCA) celebrated the opening of “PÒTOPRENS: The Urban Artists of Port-au-Prince” which brings together the work of artists working in the Haitian capital. MOCA was packed with art aficionados who browsed the exhibition while enjoying cocktails and Haitian Delights. Rara Rock Roots led by Patrick Dorce presented a lively performance in the courtyard to celebrate the opening of the reception. MOCA also hosted its free Jazz at MOCA concert featuring LeNard Rutledge in the MOCA Plaza. Guests had the opportunity to meet and greet with co-curators Leah Gordan and Edouard Duval-Carrié, special advisor Jean-Daniel Lafontant as well as PÒTOPRENS artists Ronald Edmond, André Eugène, Lhérisson Dubréus, Guyodo (Frantz Jacques), Evel Romain and Jean Claude Saintilus. MOCA Executive Director Chana Sheldon was joined by City of North Miami officials, MOCA Chairman William Lehman Jr. and his wife, Shirley Lehman, MOCA’s Board of Trustees Clark Reynolds, Marc Napolitano and Peggy Hollander and the Green Family Foundation’s Executive Director Mireille Louis Charles to celebrate the opening.

The exhibition features work that illuminates the history, music, politics, religion, magic, architecture, art, and literature that intersect in Port-au-Prince, enabling the viewer to reflect upon the past and speculate about the future of this vital city and its country. Co-curated by Haitian-American artist and curator Edouard Duval-Carrié and British artist and curator Leah Gordon, and organized by Pioneer Works Founding Artistic Director Gabriel Florenz with special advisor Jean-Daniel Lafontant, PÒTOPRENS is a large-scale exhibition of sculptures, photographs, and films, accompanied by a recreated Port-au-Prince barbershop. Representing one of the most vibrant and creative cities in the Caribbean, PÒTOPRENS mirrors the organization of the city itself by highlighting specific districts in Port-au-Prince where art is produced—each with its own particular subjects, forms, and materials. The exhibition includes a selection of photographs and films that further contextualize Port-au-Prince as a far more complex city than is often represented in the news. “PÒTOPRENS: The Urban Artists of Port-au-Prince,” accompanied by extensive public programming, will be on view at MOCA through Aug. 11, 2019.