Transformation Through Haitian Kreyol HAMOC’s Third Annual Half Day Conference

Transformation Through Haitian Kreyol HAMOC’s Third Annual Half Day Conference
FREE EVENT
Saturday, December 5 | 11am – 3pm
Harry S. Truman College | 1145 W. Wilson Ave, Chicago, IL 60640
Free On-site Parking

About the Event
Join HAMOC at Harry S. Truman College for its Third Annual Half Day Conference.
How can Haitian Kreyol continue to Transform Haiti and its people? This half day conference will explore the power of Haitian Kreyol
Featuring:
Keynote Speaker: Johnny Laforet, Princeton University
Panel Moderator: Erlin Geffrard, Indiana University
Panelists: Myriam Souffrant and Love-Kendy Jourdan

Transformation Through Haitian Kreyol
An exhibition of artwork on loan from the Collection of the Waterloo Center for the Arts
On View at HAMOC October 3, 2026 – January 7, 2027
About the Exhibition
The Waterloo Center for the Arts is proud to present this grouping of objects from its extensive Haitian art collection, artworks of multiple genres that in one way or another present or project the linguistic and expressive traditions of Haiti. Among the treasures in this exhibition is a large papier-mâché depiction of an immigrant boat covered in Kreyol phrases, questions, and prayers as well as a luminous drapo by Myrlande Constant that includes a chant for Ogou, the lwa of fire, courage, and victory.

Also included is Alan Lomax’s Haiti with notes by Gage Averill, which is a portfolio with field notes, pictures, and recordings, all in a beautiful clamshell box. The recordings contain Haitian carnival songs, rara ceremonies, and even singing by Zora Neale Hurston. Averill was nominated for a Grammy for this enticing package in 2009. With the assistance of the Library of Congress and the Association for Cultural Equity, Lomax’s original 1936-37 recordings were repatriated to Haiti after the great earthquake of 2010.

The Haitian collection at the Waterloo Center for the Arts is singular, retaining almost 2,000 Haitian art objects. Established in 1977, the collection is recognized as the largest publicly held collection of Haitian art in the United States. The Center strives to share its collection locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally to further appreciation and understanding of Haitian culture. Find out more at www.waterloocenterforthearts.org.