(PDF) (DOC) (JPG)April 13, 2018

MAHWAH, N.J. – The Ramapo College Art Galleries will host a discussion about the arts in Haiti and current controversies and politics, including references to President Trump’s recent statements. “Haiti’s Cultural Arts Legacy: Critique Response 2018” includes presentations by Smithsonian Fellow in Haitian Art Dr. Peter Haffner and Haitian-American activist and writer Lionel Legros.

The event, which takes place on Thursday, April 19 at 5:30 p.m. in the Kresge Gallery (located in the Berrie Center for Performing and Visual Arts), is free and open to the public.

Artworks in Ramapo’s internationally renowned Haitian art collections will be featured as examples of the rich cultural heritage of Haiti.

Haffner recently received his Ph.D. in Culture and Performance from UCLA. His interdisciplinary arts-based research centers on “Haitian art” as a category constructed through complex global cultural dynamics that have informed the transnational production, exhibition, and circulation of the work of Haitian artists.  He has worked extensively with artists, collectors, and curators in Haiti and the U.S. and at several private galleries in New York City. In September, Haffner begins a postdoctoral fellowship at The Smithsonian National Museum of African Art.

Legros has taught at York College and Kingsborough Community College. He also was a teacher in New York City public schools for 30 years.  A long-time activist, Legros founded L-Heurre Haitienne Radio at Columbia University, which he hosted from 1969 to 2002.  He is a Haitian art collector and was friends with poet and Haitian art expert Selden Rodman, whose collection donations form the base of Ramapo College’s internationally renowned collections.

This event will be presented in the Kresge Gallery, where an exhibition by one of Haiti’s leading contemporary artists Pascale Monnin, is on view.

For more information, contact Sydney Jenkins at 201-684-7147.

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About Ramapo College

Ramapo College of New Jersey is the state’s premier public liberal arts college and is committed to academic excellence through interdisciplinary and experiential learning, and international and intercultural understanding. The comprehensive college is situated among the beautiful Ramapo Mountains, is within commuting distance to New York City, was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful College Campuses in America by CondeNast Traveler, and boasts the best on-campus housing in New Jersey per Niche.com. Established in 1969, Ramapo College offers bachelor’s degrees in the arts, business, data science, humanities, social sciences and the sciences, as well as in professional studies, which include business, education, nursing and social work. In addition, the College offers courses leading to teacher certification at the elementary and secondary levels, and offers graduate programs leading to master’s degrees in Accounting, Applied Mathematics, Business Administration, Contemporary Instructional Design, Computer Science, Creative Music Technology, Data Science, Educational Leadership, Nursing, Social Work and Special Education, as well as a Doctor of Nursing Practice.

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