The Life of a Haitian Artist Paintings Reflect Beauty of His Country Not Misery Pawol Konpa Will Return

By Theresa Smolen
Special to The Haitian Times

We are featuring works by this very talented artist .
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Petion-Ville - Lesly Cetout, a 30-year-old Haitian artist who believes his abstracts are most like Picasso’s in style, does not paint the struggles of Haitian life, but rather the beauty of his country and its people. "The real lives of most Haitians are miserable," he explained. Cetout lives in a poor section of Petion-Ville.

"My neighbors and I have no electricity, no running water; it is very crowded and noisy, and there are lots of rats, dust and dirt," he said recently. "It’s a long walk to the street; the road is terrible and follows a big ravine that is full of garbage, sewage and dead animals."

Despite the realities, Haitian artists are known for their bright multi-colored works of art. The beauty is evident more in the rugged terrain and in the people than in the overall reality of life in Haiti. A beautiful painting of a crowded market in Port-au-Prince can be created when the potholes, dirt, garbage and starving street children are eschewed for the sea of Haitians wearing clothing in every color of the crayon box and the brightly painted tap taps, pickup trucks with benches installed in the back that are used for public transportation. Cetout gets the most enjoyment from painting flowers, but said these do not sell well unless the artist is already known and admired. He also paints market and street scenes, pastoral scenes and abstract portraits.

According to Cetout, people see similarities between his paintings and those of Henri Matisse and Paul Klee. In his Notes of a Painter, Henri Matisse wrote about dreaming of an art devoid of troubling or depressing subject matter and his paintings reflect this desire. Matisse began using more vibrant colors after a visit to Morocco in 1912.

Paul Klee became known for his use of color after he visited Tunisia in 1914 and declared himself "possessed by color," because the brilliancy of light and color of the African landscape so affected him. In addition, Klee showed a willingness to experiment with different styles, techniques and materials. He would paint on almost anything, including glass, wood, paper, newsprint, and plaster.

Cetout also enjoys experimenting and trying new things. "I have done several paintings on carpeting, something that is totally new to me and to Haitian art," said Cetout. "Another time I experimented with painting on blue jeans fabric since I didn’t have any regular canvas at the time. I discovered that this fabric is better than ordinary canvas because it is tougher."

He said that it is very difficult to be an artist in Haiti and only about 30 percent of Haitian artists prosper. "Most receive nothing but the intrinsic pleasure of creativity," he said. Cetout said the reason there are so many painters and other artists in Haiti is that other opportunities are very limited and require education.

"You don’t have to be formally educate to be an artist," he said. "If you have talent, there will be opportunities." Although, he concedes, artists are likely to have more opportunities and more success if they can afford a teacher and good supplies. "My formal art education only began in January 2003," said Cetout. "I am still mastering fundamental techniques and experimenting with different styles of painting. After I establish a personal style and a solid reputation, then I can experiment again with new styles and subjects."

Cetout’s Haitian role models are Lesly Joseph and Lyonel Laurenceau. Joseph, a 35-year old painter who lives in the Dominican Republic, paints abstracts in the Saint Soleil style using linear patterns and symbolism reflecting practices of vodou and, while not yet well known, he is recognized as a good painter. Laurenceau is a painter associated with the School of Beauty, which incorporated modernist styles with local themes and produced paintings that were devoid of political messages and unreflective of the harsh reality of life of Haiti.

" Everything he does is natural and full of life and movement," Cetout said of Laurenceau’s work. As is typical of many Haitians, Cetout has several jobs, including painter of all things, translator, former bodyguard and teacher. His main source of income since September 2002 is teaching at Wings of Hope, a home for disabled orphaned children in Fermathe, a town an hour away from his home. " I have no special training for this job, but have learned on the job and from others," he said. "I teach 12 students from three to 22 years old, who have a wide range of disabilities and abilities. It is a difficult and exhausting job."

Cetout’s passion is painting though. He has turned down good job offers and postponed marrying and starting a family, because his goal is to establish himself as a respected Haitian artist.

He paints in the evening by candlelight and a lantern. "The people of Haiti are simply extraordinary; they are so tough and resilient," said Sally Cole, an American who gave Cetout the lantern. "They expect difficulties and they don’t moan and groan about them when they come; they just deal with it with patience, flexibility and a sense of humor."

Cetout primarily sells his paintings to missionaries or other visitors to Haiti. According to Cetout, although visitors to Haiti will see a lot of "street art," a serious artist won’t sell his paintings on the street. "Street artists paint for tourists who want souvenirs, they don’t use good materials, and the canvasses are often damaged by weather," he explained. Cole said one of the reasons that it is so difficult to develop as an artist in Haiti, is that daily survival itself is a constant challenge. "One’s concept of ‘progress’ and ‘development’ change significantly after living in Haiti for awhile," she said. "Often one’s entire day is spent working at one job or another, traveling long distances by public transportation on roads that are usually crowded, dealing with bureaucracy and attending to family problems…all in a country where many lack electricity, plumbing, basic sanitary needs, and clean drinking water."

Cetout’s dream is to become a famous artist and help his mother and the rest of his poor family. He would also like to marry and have a family of his own, in addition to establishing a "big, big orphanage that takes care of many children and provides them with education and professional training so that they will grow up with a heart for helping others."

reprinted with permission from Theresa Smolen