Atelier Jeudy, a manufacturer of lamps, tables and chairs in metalworks based in the Noailles Artistic Village, is represented at the craft fair "Solidarité Noailles" in Pétion-Ville, Haïti, on Friday, April 14, 2023. Photo by Juhakenson Blaise for The Haitian Times
Atelier Jeudy, a manufacturer of lamps, tables and chairs in metalworks based in the Noailles Artistic Village, is represented at the craft fair "Solidarité Noailles" in Pétion-Ville, Haïti, on Friday, April 14, 2023. Photo by Juhakenson Blaise for The Haitian Times

PORT-AU-PRINCE — The Village of Noailles in Haïti’s Croix-des-Bouquets is considered the largest grouping of artists and sculptors in the entire Caribbean, with its 800 artists and 80 workshops, according to the Periferia organization. Yet, for at least one year, ongoing gang violence in the area have caused artisans to scatter all over the capital, taking on other work to survive. 

"As artisans, it's when we're at home [in Village Noailles] that we're most comfortable," says craftsman Jean-Mary Soulouque, who complained of gangs confiscating people’s properties. "We’re not really living, we’re not happy. There's no life for us artists and there's no life in the village."

Overview:

About twenty iron craftsmen participated in the second edition of the crafts exhibit to support the ironworks artists

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I am Juhakenson Blaise, a journalist based in the city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. I cover the news that develops in this city and deals with other subjects related to the experience of Haitians for the Haitian Times newspaper. I am also a lover of poetry.