Event overview
This presentation will discuss the historical mythopoesis of the Bois Caïman ceremony of August 1791 and how it was used to support a romance of revolutionary vodou used by both Left and Right wing political movements within and outside of Haiti.
John Cussans (Associate Research Fellow, Visual Cultures) is an artist, writer and independent researcher with a background in graphic design, illustration and art theory whose practice crosses video, text, image-making and cultural history. Since 2009 he has been involved with the Ghetto Biennale in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, working with the Haitian video collective Tele Geto. He has exhibited at a number of galleries internationally and his writing has been published in several collections and journals (Frozen Tears, Strange Attractor, Transmission Annual). He is currently writing a book about representations of Haiti and vodou in western popular culture (Undead Uprising: Haiti, Horror and the Zombie Complex).
The ceremony of Bois Caïman of August 1791 is regarded by many to be the founding event of the Haitian Revolution which ultimately culminated in the first slavery-free, independent republic of the modern world. Since the 19th century the role of vodou in the ceremony has been used to affirm an essential Black and African dimension to the proceedings that has been put to the service of various forms of Haitian nationalism and historical myth-building. This presentation will discuss the historical mythopoesis of the Bois Caïman ceremony during the 1920's and 30's and how it was used to support a romance of revolutionary vodou that has been used by both Left and Right wing political movements within and outside of Haiti.
All are welcome.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Mar 2015 | 5:00pm - 7:00pm |
Accessibility
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