Caribbean Today As the Haitian Heritage Museum approaches it’s 10th birthday this coming January, it is appropriate to reflect on the epic journey of creating the 1st Haitian Heritage Museum in the world outside of Haiti. The museum’s founder & co-founder, Eveline Pierre & Serge Rodriguez, were motivated to embark on this journey to cultivate a flourishing cultural mecca in the heart of the Haitian community. Their goal was to promote and foster the historical contributions of the Haitian people through Art, Cultural Programming and Education. Since the inception of the Haitian Heritage Museum almost a decade ago during Haiti’s bicentennial anniversary, both Eveline & Serge have dedicated their lives to creating a lasting legacy by way of the museum’s educational programs: Museum Magnet & Ayiti Expose, researching & archiving historical Haitian art & artifacts through digitization and partaking in culturally relevant programming while building lasting partnerships. Now with almost a decade under their belts,…
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While growing up, Eveline Pierre spent her summers in her parents’ native country of Haiti. She realized what she saw in media didn’t reflect the richness of her family’s homeland. After jobs in entertainment and politics, she decided to open her own museum celebrating Caribbean culture in Miami. See her journey to becoming her own boss. The gig: I run a museum and curate dreams for other people. So many unique people come through the museum. Interacting with them empowers me. I help people who might not have the courage, or the tools, to navigate in the tech space and museum world. The journey: I have always really connected with my culture. At a very young age my parents would send us to Haiti for the summers and I loved it. I realized that what the media was portraying about Haiti was inaccurate. Right after my stay in Los Angeles working as an agent assistant,…
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By ED BELL & PAUL LEARY • MAY 2, 2014 Next time on South Florida Arts Beat, founder and Executive Director, Eveline Pierre, talks about ten years of cultural enlightenment at The Haitian Heritage Museum. Actor, writer, director and producer, Jon Favreau speaks with film contributor, Dan Hudak, about his new flick, Chef. The Miami International Jazz Fest takes off May 9th. Producer Arturo Campa shares his excitement with contributor Bob Weinberg. Chef Norman Van Aken dishes up A Word On Food and our Florida Keys calendar features Andy Newman. Catch the conversation and information every Friday on South Florida Arts Beat at 1:00pm. Original Article/Audio
Read More...HAITIAN HERITAGE MONTH
HAITIAN HERITAGE MONTH CELEBRATIONS KICKS-OFF AT THE HAITIAN HERITAGE MUSEUM IN MIAMI’S ART DISTRICT MIAMI, FL, April 27, 2014 The month of May is Haitian Heritage Month and to celebrate the Haitian Heritage Museum will take part in a series of events and programming. First, the Haitian Heritage Museum will celebrate by having a cadre of events throughout the community where Haitians and non-Haitians alike can come get a taste of Haitian culture without leaving or needing a passport. Haitian Heritage Month is a nationally recognized month and an opportunity for individuals including Haitians and lovers of the the Haitian culture to celebrate the rich culture, distinctive art, delicious food and learn the traditions of Haiti and its people. The celebration is an expansion of the Haitian Flag Day on May 18th, a major patriotic day celebration in Haiti and the Diaspora created to encourage patriotism. The Haitian Heritage Museum’s Month of May series of…
Read More...Miami’s Haitian Heritage Museum Celebrating 10th Anniversary
By the Caribbean Journal staff Miami’s Haitian Heritage Museum, the only museum dedicated to Haitian art and culture outside of Haiti, is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its founding. The museum, which is located in the Design District arts neighbourhood of Miami, is marking the occasion with its 10th Annual Gala on Feb. 22. The event will feature a keynote address by Haitian-American Mayor Harry LaRosiliere from Plano, Texas, with honorees to include Miami-Dade County Commissioner Jean-Monestime and Leslie Buckley, joined by African dance troupe Delou Africa. The museum has been home to a number of high-profile exhibitions in recent years, including the first exhibition of the Musee du Pantheon National Haitien, Haiti’s national museum, outside of Haiti. Original Article
Read More...National Museum of Haiti comes to Miami
Alexander Britell reports for Caribbean Journal: Haiti’s National Museum Comes to Miami. A new exhibition at the Design District-based Haitian Heritage Museum takes a look at the history of Haiti’s road to freedom. Chimen Libete, (“The Road to Freedom”), is a collaboration between the Design District-based Haitian Heritage Museum and the Museum of the Haitian National Pantheon (MUPANAH) in Port-au-Prince. Through pictures, graphics and text, it examines the history of Haiti’s path to freedom, from the scourge of slavery to independence in 1804. “It’s about the abolition of slavery, and the story of the whole period of until Haiti became independent,” Michelle Frisch, executive director of MUPANAH, told Caribbean Journal. “So it’s the whole story.” Chimen Libete was originally an exhibit at Haiti’s national museum last year. Eveline Pierre and Serge Rodriguez, co-founders of the Haitian Heritage Museum, soon approached Frisch about bringing it to Haiti, albeit in a more compact form. “The exhibit, I did…
Read More...Grant for Haitian Heritage Museum
Jul 31, 2012 Press Release WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) announced a $148,769 Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant to the Haitian Heritage Museum (HHM), which will be matched by $264,226 – 1.77 times the amount of federal investment. “As the representative for one of the largest Haitian-populated districts in Congress, I am very pleased that the Haitian Heritage Museum was awarded the African American History and Culture Grant,” said Congresswoman Wilson. “It will bolster their efforts to educate our community about Haitian culture and the countless contributions that Haitian-Americans have made to our nation. The grant will support several strategic undertakings by HHM, including maximizing accessibility, hiring of key personnel and engaging college students.” “This is an excellent example of how public dollars can attract private investment. I commend the Haitian Heritage Museum for their outstanding work to provide our nation a window into Haitian culture,” Congresswoman Wilson said….
Read More...Haitian museum builds steam
Los Angeles Times While plans proceed for a facility in Miami, the founders are seeking funds and artifacts to expand the collection. May 28, 2007 | Jennifer Kay | Associated Press MIAMI — The Haitian Heritage Museum is, for now, boxed in antioxidant cardboard in a climate-controlled storage locker. It includes 20 vibrant paintings and pieces of hand-carved folk art that will one day hang in a 25,000-square-foot building scheduled to break ground in Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood later this year. Eveline Pierre and Serge Rodrigue, the museum’s founders and only full-time staff, hope to build a permanent collection of about 1,000 items chronicling the Haitian diaspora, especially in the United States, and the traditions they brought to their new homes. The two are of Haitian descent, having lived most of their lives in southern Florida. Pierre is in arts and entertainment management and Rodrigue is in construction management. They worked together in 2003 on plans to…
Read More...Haitians Keep Heritage Alive Through Arts
SunSentinel September 4, 2005 | By Arlene Barochin Staff Writer While the media portray images of poverty, death and political instability from Haiti, some South Florida residents are trying to shed a positive light on a different aspect of Haiti for the incoming generation. Community members are passing on their culture and ideas through one of the oldest forms of Haitian communication: art. “Art is not limiting. Through art, people liberate themselves,” said Pascal “Kafe” Garoute, 47, of Lauderhill, lifelong artist and daughter of the internationally acclaimed artist Tiga. “Art for us is not an objective; it is a way of life,” Garoute said. Many Haitian artists share these ideals, and fear upcoming Haitian-American generations will lose sight of this part of their heritage. “Your children will know nothing about Haiti,” Garoute said, “and that will kill me.” To bridge the gap between the generations, artists such as Garoute and husband Christian “Kristo” Nicholas, 50, strive to…
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