9/13/2024
KATHIA ST. HILAIRE EXHIBITION CLOSING FESTIVAL
THE KATHIA ST. HILAIRE EXHIBITION CLOSING FESTIVAL CELEBRATED HAITIAN CULTURE THROUGH A MULTISENSORY EXPERIENCE OF ART, MUSIC, AND FOOD.
VENUE
SET WITHIN A TRANQUIL SANCTUARY SURROUNDED BY WOODED PATHS AND MAGNIFICENT MOUNTAIN VIEWS, THE LUNDER CENTER’S DISTINCTIVE ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN BY FAMED ARCHITECT TADAO ANDO PROVIDED THE PERFECT BACKDROP FOR AN EVENING CELEBRATING HAITIAN CULTURE, SOCIAL JUSTICE, AND ARTISTIC EXPRESSION.
VISITORS WERE INVITED TO EXPLORE BOTH THE INDOOR GALLERIES AND OUTDOOR TERRACES. THE SPENCER TERRACE OFFERED AN INTIMATE SETTING WITH HIGH TOPS AND TEA CANDLES, WHILE THE MOLTZ TERRACE SERVED AS BOTH A GATHERING SPACE AND A DYNAMIC DANCE FLOOR LATER IN THE EVENING. THE VENUE’S ELEVATED LOCATION, WITH VIEWS OVER WILLIAMSTOWN, FOSTERED AN EXCLUSIVE ATMOSPHERE THAT ENCOURAGED BOTH REFLECTIVE ENGAGEMENT WITH THE ARTWORK AND FREE-SPIRITED EXPRESSION.
MUSICAL PERFORMANCES AND CULTURAL CONNECTION
IN LINE WITH THE THEMES OF LIBERATION AND EMPOWERMENT PRESENT IN KATHIA ST. HILAIRE’S WORK, THE FESTIVAL FEATURED TWO HAITIAN-AMERICAN FEMME DJS—ASHLEY VENOM AND DJ RAYVINO—WHO ARE ALSO SOCIAL JUSTICE ADVOCATES. ASHLEY VENOM, KNOWN FOR HER TECHNO BEATS AND ACTIVISM, AND DJ RAYVINO, WITH THEIR HOUSE VIBES AND UPBEAT ENERGY, BROUGHT A DIVERSE RANGE OF SOUNDS THAT RESONATED WITH THE EVENING’S THEMES. THEIR PERFORMANCES ALIGNED WITH THE EXHIBITION’S EXPLORATION OF POSTCOLONIAL HISTORIES AND THE FREEDOM TO EXPRESS ONE’S IDENTITY.
THIS CELEBRATION OF HAITIAN ART, CULTURE, AND SOCIAL JUSTICE WAS ESPECIALLY POIGNANT GIVEN THE CURRENT POLITICAL CLIMATE. WITH RISING PREJUDICE AGAINST HAITIAN IMMIGRANTS AND ONGOING STRUGGLES IN HAITI, THE FESTIVAL’S FOCUS ON VISIBILITY AND SOLIDARITY BECAME ALL THE MORE SIGNIFICANT.
FOOD, DRINK, AND CULTURAL AMBIENCE
THE EVENT FEATURED FOOD AND DRINKS THAT COMPLEMENTED THE CULTURAL ATMOSPHERE. BEZZLE’S BBQ, A FAMILY-RUN CATERING BUSINESS FROM ADAMS, MASSACHUSETTS, SERVED TRADITIONAL HAITIAN DISHES, INCLUDING CARIBBEAN PORK CHUNKS WITH PIKLIZ, BEEF AND CHICKEN PATTIES, AND CRISPY FRIED PLANTAINS. HOT PLATE BREWING, A LATINA-OWNED BREWERY BASED IN PITTSFIELD, CREATED A SPECIAL BEER INSPIRED BY BOTH ST. HILAIRE’S WORK AND HAITIAN BREWING TRADITIONS, FEATURING THE ARTIST’S “DAVID” ON THE LABEL, TRANSFORMING THE BOTTLE INTO A KEEPSAKE.
LIGHTING AND ENVIRONMENTAL VISUALS
STAGE LIGHTS, REFLECTING THE EXHIBITION’S COLOR PALETTE, ILLUMINATED THE ENTRANCE AND THE TREES BEHIND THE DJS, CREATING A WARM, INTIMATE ATMOSPHERE. A LARGE-SCALE PROJECTION OF ST. HILAIRE’S ARTWORK "DAVID" WAS PROJECTED ONTO THE LUNDER CENTER’S EXTERIOR WALL, VISIBLE TO GUESTS AS THEY APPROACHED THE VENUE. THE MOVING IMAGE NOT ONLY GUIDED VISITORS BUT ALSO SERVED AS A DYNAMIC VISUAL INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING’S THEMES. INSIDE, THE EXHIBITION REMAINED OPEN FOR LATE-NIGHT ACCESS, ALLOWING GUESTS TO EXPLORE THE INTRICATE WORKS THAT WEAVE TOGETHER THEMES OF HAITI’S COMPLEX HISTORY.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND COLLABORATION
THE FESTIVAL WAS A COMMUNITY EFFORT. STUDENTS FROM WILLIAMS COLLEGE’S WCFM 91.9 RADIO STATION CONTRIBUTED TO THE EVENT’S PRODUCTION. JEANA CHOI FERMI AND ALEXA GREENBERG, ALSO FROM WCFM 91.9, WERE COMMISSIONED TO CREATE A SHORT FILM CAPTURING THE ESSENCE OF THE CELEBRATION. IN COLLABORATION WITH ROB WIESENBERGER, THE EXHIBITION’S CURATOR, AND PERROTIN, ST. HILAIRE’S GALLERY, THE EVENT WAS DESIGNED TO ENSURE A SEAMLESS PRESENTATION THAT HONORED THE ARTIST’S VISION.
THE EVENT’S BRANDING DREW ON KATHIA ST. HILAIRE’S WEAVING AND PRINTMAKING TECHNIQUES.
THE FLYER, WHICH FEATURED COLLECTIBLE TEAR-OFF WRISTBANDS, EVOKED THE OPEN WEAVING AT THE EDGES OF ST. HILAIRE’S WORK, WHICH SHE USES AS A METAPHOR FOR THE ONGOING STRUGGLE FOR HAITIAN LIBERATION. WHEN POSTERED, THE TEAR-OFFS FLUTTER WITH THE BREEZE, CASTING SHADOWS THAT SUMMON HISTORIES AND PRESENTS. THE FLYER’S KINETIC MOTION INVITES PUBLIC INTERACTION, OFFERING A TACTILE ENTRY POINT INTO ST. HILAIRE’S NARRATIVE WHILE NODDING TO THE MULTISENSORY NATURE OF THE EVENT.
THE COLOR PALETTE, A BRIGHT INTERPRETATION OF ST. HILAIRE’S DAVID, CREATED A WARM, CELEBRATORY TONE WHILE STAYING TRUE TO THE EXHIBITION’S PRE-EXISTING VISUAL IDENTITY.