Art Classes in Petit Trou

Dear fellow partners and supporters of the Colorado Haiti Project,

Experiencing beauty comes with opening our eyes and truly noticing detail, color, shape and emotion. A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to spend a week in Petit Trou, visiting and collaborating with our partners there. One opportunity during the week was to be an art class for students of St. Paul’s with a Haitian artist we recently met working in Port au Prince. In talking to him and enjoying his art, we found out he was from Petit Trou, and we invited him out to work the kids at the school. Unfortunately, in the end he was unable to travel with us that particular week. Instead, I was given the opportunity to stand in for him with 10 eager middle schoolers.

Not being the artist Junior is, I decided that what I could offer was just an eye opening to the beauty around us. That was the challenge presented the students at St. Paul’s School. Instead of glitter and glue, paint and scissors, I provided paper and pencil and asked them to draw what they saw. In this case, a simple leaf. As anyone tasked with this simple challenge, the students soon realized that to leave preconceived notions behind and actually draw what they saw was anything but simple. It was their first experience with art through observation.

Even though Junior was not with us, I relied heavily on photos of his art in helping the students grasp the meaning of shade and light, and to observe the beauty of imperfect perfection. After their initial leaf drawing, each student chose a little piece of nature and began their own little masterpieces, focusing on drawing what they saw! It was a wonderful afternoon, and I feel blessed to have participated with these eager young artists.

Sunday, Dec.3 from 4:30 to 7:30 the Colorado Haiti Project will be holding an art event called Haiti for the Holidays at the Rayback Collective in Boulder. We will be celebrating and sharing pieces from Junior and other Haitian artists. We will also have impressive pieces from local Colorado artists, and there will be artisan craftwork from Haiti to finish your gift list. I hope you can join us to absorb the colors and life of Haiti and Colorado through art. At the same time, knowing your purchases support progress and partnership in rural Haiti.

Hope to see you on the 3rd!

With gratitude,
Teresa Henry