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DJS AT SUNSET
DJs AT SUNSET BLENDED MUSIC, ART, AND COMMUNITY IN CELEBRATION OF HAITIAN CREATIVITY.
SET ON THE FERNÁNDEZ TERRACE AND OVERLOOKING THE REFLECTING POOLS DESIGNED BY LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT REED HILDERBRAND, THE SERIES OF DJ SETS OFFERED A RELAXED YET VIBRANT ATMOSPHERE.
THE SERIES CELEBRATED THE EXHIBITION KATHIA ST. HILAIRE: INVISIBLE EMPIRES. KATHIA ST. HILAIRE EXAMINES HAITI’S COMPLEX HISTORY THROUGH LAYERED TECHNIQUES OF PRINTMAKING, COLLAGE, AND WEAVING. THE FEATURED DJs EXPLORED THEMES ALIGNED WITH THE EXHIBITION, DRAWING ON HAITI'S CULTURAL LEGACIES AND HISTORY THROUGH THEIR MUSIC.
VAL JEANTY, A PIONEER OF AFRO-ELECTRONICA, BLENDED HAITIAN FOLKLORIC RHYTHMS WITH ELECTRONIC SOUNDS. GARDY GIRAULT FUSED AFRO-HAITIAN GENRES SUCH AS RARA AND RASIN WITH PROGRESSIVE HOUSE BEATS, WHILE LUDJY DERISIER BROUGHT A YOUTHFUL ENERGY WITH HIS DRUM-AND-BASS-INFLUENCED MELODIES.
GUESTS OF ALL AGES RELAXED IN CHAIRS OR GATHERED ON THE TERRACE’S WEST-FACING STEPS TO ENJOY PICNICS AS THE SUN SET. AFTER DARK, LIGHTS ILLUMINATED THE PERIMETER OF THE POOLS, TRANSFORMING THE SPACE INTO A DYNAMIC DANCE FLOOR WHERE GUESTS CAME TOGETHER TO SOCIALIZE. THE NATURAL ACOUSTICS OF THE CLARK CENTER ENHANCED THE MUSIC, WITH THE DJs’ MIXES ECHOING ACROSS THE VENUE AND CREATING AN IMMERSIVE SOUNDSCAPE.
THE EVENTS ALSO COINCIDED WITH FREE LATE-NIGHT HOURS, WHICH INCLUDED EXTENDED ACCESS TO THE EXHIBITION GUILLAUME LETHIÈRE, FEATURING WORKS INSPIRED BY THE HAITIAN REVOLUTION. TO PROMOTE EQUAL ACCESS, A FREE BUS SERVICE WAS COORDINATED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE BERKSHIRE REGIONAL TRANSPORT AUTHORITY (BRTA). THIS INITIATIVE CONNECTED THE CLARK TO NEARBY TOWNS, ELIMINATING TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS FOR LOW-INCOME FAMILIES AND OTHERS WITHOUT RELIABLE MEANS OF TRAVEL.
BY COMBINING HAITIAN MUSIC, EXTENDED MUSEUM ACCESS, AND INCREASED TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS, DJs AT SUNSET BROUGHT TOGETHER DIVERSE AUDIENCES FOR A MEANINGFUL AND CELEBRATORY EXPERIENCE THAT WOVE TOGETHER HISTORY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY.