Word of mouth (November/December 2015)
Traveller’s tree What’s a miniature butterfly-winged skeleton doing on a Christmas tree? Philip Sander explains the origins of a curious family tradition December 2006, a chilly evening in Delhi. The...
View ArticleCastor oil, please
Castor oil. Two words that used to strike terror in the hearts — and stomachs — of Caribbean children. In the old days, at the end of the July–August vacation, we would be given a good “clean-out,”...
View ArticleJacmel, Haiti
Streetscape On the eastern side of sheltered Jacmel Bay, the town stretches back from a shingly beach to a steep escarpment above Rue Seymour Pradel, with the town square, Place Toussaint Louverture,...
View ArticleVoyager among gods
Eighty years ago, on 14 April, 1936, a forty-five-year-old African-American woman arrived by boat from New York City in Kingston, Jamaica. It was to be no run-of-the-mill business trip, family visit,...
View ArticleHadriana’s wedding | Showcase
I died on the night of the most beautiful day of my life: I died on the night of my marriage in the St Philippe and St Jacques Church. Everyone thought I had been struck down by the sacramental Yes...
View ArticleThe Lüders affair | On this day
For much of the more than two centuries since its declaration of independence on 1 January, 1804, Haiti has been the victim of both foreign intervention and neglect. It took until 1862 for the United...
View ArticleWord of mouth (Nov/Dec 2017)
Why Jean-Michael Basquiat is a posthumous art star, how the Sunset Festival in Trinidad is changing Caribbean dance music, and where to end 2017 with a truly big bang: Paramaribo The post Word of mouth...
View ArticleArt in the open | Round trip
Year-round, across the Caribbean, you can experience art in the street, in public spaces, out in the open — no need to buy a museum ticket. Here are murals, monuments, and even an impromptu art gallery...
View ArticleHappy Day in Haiti — the Duvaliers remembered
The history of Haiti contains few happy anniversaries. The events that have marked the country and made international news have almost always been bad news – natural disasters, refugee crises,...
View ArticleSans-Souci, Haiti: uncovering a kingdom | Discover
It’s one of the Caribbean’s most resonant historic sites, but surprisingly little is known about the true history of Sans-Souci, the palace of Henri Christophe, writes Erline Andrews. Now a...
View ArticleTessa Mars: full free | Closeup
Haitian artist Tessa Mars is influenced by her country’s revolutionary history as much as her own family’s intellectual tradition, and her lifelong fascination with riddles. Her colourful paintings...
View Article“Papa Doc” Duvalier: When the bogeyman is real | On this day
Sixty years ago, Haitian dictator “Papa Doc” Duvalier set up a fearsome paramilitary corps to dispatch political opposition. James Ferguson looks back at the sinister history of the Tontons Macoutes...
View ArticleFootball holiday | On this day
When two English football clubs toured the Caribbean fifty-five years ago, local teams in Jamaica, Trinidad, and Barbados were no competition. Haiti was a different story, writes James Ferguson The...
View ArticleNaomi Osaka: “It was never my goal to blend in” | Snapshot
For anyone who likes easy answers to questions of identity, Naomi Osaka is a conundrum: half-Haitian, half-Japanese, raised for part of her childhood in New York City, visibly hybrid. As Caroline...
View ArticleThe Ghetto Biennale: when art is defiance | Backstory
Ten years ago, a group of artists in Haiti launched an audacious, even provocative, project: the Ghetto Biennale, drawing international attention to the creative community in Port-au-Prince’s Grand...
View ArticleQ&A with Esery Mondesir | Screenshots
Haitian filmmaker Esery Mondesir discusses his documentary triptych exploring the lives of his compatriots in the diaspora The post Q&A with Esery Mondesir | Screenshots appeared first on Caribbean...
View ArticleBookshelf (Mar/Apr 2021) | Book reviews
This month’s reading picks from the Caribbean, with reviews of Inheritance: The Story of a West Indian Family by Ian McDonald; of colour by Katherine Agyemaa Agard; My Mother’s House by Francesca...
View ArticleThe king of the republic | On this day
James Ferguson looks at the fascinating story of Sans Souci Palace — the pride of Haiti’s (short-lived) King Henry Christophe, inaugurated 210 years ago at the peak of his colourful, tragic reign The...
View ArticleFor the ancestors | On this day
Some 100 years after becoming the world’s first free Black republic, Haiti remained without a national anthem. James Ferguson looks at the creation of “La Dessalinienne” The post For the ancestors | On...
View ArticleOf eccentricity and resilience | On this day
From a stylish, luxurious family mansion constructed in a distinctly Haitian style, to a hotel attracting top artists and visitors from around the world, and an iconic survivor of the 2010 earthquake,...
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