Rising Haitian Painter Manuel Mathieu Explores the Complex History of His Homeland

It’s a two-sided canvas: One half is full of color, the other gray, and nearly empty. In 2020, Manuel Mathieu first debuted his large-scale painting Sacred Burden, made earlier that year in response to ongoing political instability in Haiti. In an interview, he called the acrylic, chalk, charcoal, fabric, and tape on canvas painting “really powerful,” repeating the “really” several times, noting its links to the politics of the Caribbean nation.

“Haiti’s been through a lot of struggles in the last few years,” said the Haitian-born artist, whose work is partly influenced by his homeland’s complex history. “Being Haitian comes with a burden because I’m always in a state of turmoil. But on the other hand, it’s something that I consider very sacred and precious.”

The piece is featured in “World Discovered Under Other Skies,” one of two exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami (MOCA) that make up Mathieu’s U.S. major solo debut, which is on view through October 6th. It’s the culmination of a run of several shows for the artist. Concurrently, Mathieu’s first major institutional presentation in Europe, “Manuel Mathieu: The End of Figuration,” opened in February at Bexhill’s De La Warr Pavilion and is on view through May 27th. He is also featured in “Re Enchantment” at Thaddaeus Ropac in Paris through May 24th and a show on textiles and power, “Soft Power,” at Das Minsk in Germany through August 11th. Yet, as his art world star rises, he is still focused on the community where he was born.

Mathieu was born in Haiti in 1986, the year that marked the end of the Duvalier dynasty and dictatorship (father and son Francois and Jean-Claude ruled the country for almost 29 years between 1957 and 1986). The artist considers this past in his work Siimone (2020), an acrylic, chalk, and charcoal portrait of Simone Duvalier, the former first lady of Haiti, who was married to despotic president Francois Duvalier. Mathieu was interested in exploring the dictatorship of the homeland and noted that the women who were close to power in Haiti were not talked about enough.

“Haiti is a matriarchal society. Men might think they run things, but I think it’s women [who do.] Francois was such a strong character that I felt like I needed to underline the presence of his wife, Simone,” said Mathieu. In the painting, the former first lady’s face is distorted, her features unclear beneath a purple hat—perhaps a nod to the largely invisible power she wielded as the first lady during her husband’s presidency and defacto leader after the death of her husband and during the first few years of her son’s rule.

Mathieu’s initial encounter with art was through the artists of his homeland. Then, at age 15, his mentor, the self-taught Haitian-born artist Mario Benjamin, introduced him to Western artists, including Christo, Cornelia Parker, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. At age 19, Mathieu emigrated to Montreal, Canada, where he studied fine art at Université du Québec à Montréal before earning a master’s in fine arts from Goldsmiths. Since then, his work has been featured worldwide in galleries like Pilar Corrias, Maruani Mercier Gallery, HdM Gallery, and Kavi Gupta Gallery. Mathieu is the first Black Haitian Canadian artist whose work was acquired by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

While “World Discovered Under Other Skies” first opened at the Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery in Toronto before traveling elsewhere in Canada, a second exhibition has also been added for the U.S., which also includes new work. “Dwelling on the Invisible” is billed as an extension of the 2020 exhibition and is curated by MOCA’s Adeze Wilford. It features large-scale paintings, photography, sculpture, video, and mosaic installation.

In this newer body of work, the artist expands his interest from the past into the present, specifically the ongoing political crisis that Haiti has been experiencing since 2018. This exhibition includes Totem (2024), a digital print of a photo the artist took about a decade ago in Haiti. It shows pieces of fabric hanging on a half-built structure with iron rods sticking out. The artist said this work symbolizes a country struggling to build itself, an unfinished process that still shows a sense of dignity and resilience.

“I’m trying to talk about what is happening right now,” explained Mathieu, referring to the gang violence and political instability that Haiti has been experiencing. “It is important in my work to always keep a sense of urgency. It is something that is kind of necessary for me to talk about because it’s very dear to my heart.”

The four-minute, six-second digital video DIFE (2024), the title of which translates to “fire” in Creole, portrays an inflamed mental state. “It is trying to expose the feeling of being powerless and the rage that it can generate,” explained the artist. “A lot of Haitians have to imagine and build a future in a state of rage and instability. In that video, fire symbolizes the fuel to that anger.”

Another highlight of this body of work is Manifestation (2023). The artist noted that the word is a French translation for “protest” and describes it as “an evolution of [the] perspective” in Sacred Burden. Upon entering the museum, the 80-by-75-inch mixed-media artwork is also the first painting a visitor sees. “It introduces you to the emotional challenges that you’re going to be facing in the exhibition,” said Mathieu.

This is particularly significant given the museum’s location: North Miami is home to a large Haitian community with a similar climate and, within the U.S., is geographically close to the island. What does it mean to the artist to show in a place connected to his homeland?

“To be able to [host this] show so close to Haiti, not in Haiti but with so much Haitian presence, for me, it’s the starting point of the trigger that I’m trying to make in people’s minds,” he said. The artist considers the show an opportunity to bring young and old Haitians together, not only to look at the works on view but also to sit and dream together. “We’re going to have intimate conversations about ourselves, our history, about our legacy, about the complexity of that legacy, about our aspirations,” added Mathieu. “That’s kind of my goal.”