Haiti Cherie

Today I received a copy of this beautiful book which I had won on eBay.

As you can see, it is not in perfect condition, but it is more than 55 years old, and was printed in Haiti.

It is a collection of photos taken by a Frenchman in the early 1950's, along with an essay on the island written in French and translated in English alongside.

There is a photo portrait in the beginning of the book of the president of Haiti at that time, Paul Magliore, who was replaced in 1956 by a man who then appointed himself president for life, the dictator Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier.

The book is part of the research I have been assembling for the last several years as I have been working to develop a film from a remarkable book by a remarkable woman: The Dew Breaker by Haitian author Edwidge Danticat.

I'll write more about this project in the future, but today I wanted to share these images to set the stage.

Here is a photo of the town of Jacmel, one of the locations in The Dew Breaker.

Here are workers delivering flowers to the market.

And here is a beautiful series of black and white images of a Haitian fisherman casting his net.

As Martin Scorcese talks about in commentary on the making of "Raging Bull", every film needs a Master Image that becomes the visual key to the style and tone of the movie.

I don't know if any of these striking images will ultimately inform our British director Dominic Savage as he starts to design the landscape of this movie in his mind, but I hope they excite and fascinate you as they do me.

william

Comments

[Margaret Oomen]

I am so thankful to elsita for letting me know about your newish blog today. Congratulation ! From what I have read so far it is every bit as wonderful as I imagined it would be. I am reading from the start but I had to pause here to comment. These photographs brought back some vivid memories of hearing my uncle Real ( missing an accent on the e) who was a business man from Montreal with a beautiful home in Port au Prince, Haiti. He set this home prior to "baby doc" and your photos are just as he described its beauty and people. He tried to continue to do business and live there for a portion of the year but later had to leave quickly and lost everything. The photo of the fisherman with his adonis like physique is really something. Thanks for sharing these pages.

[Kettelie St. Fleur]

Wow!
This is absolutely beautiful.
We left Haiti when I was nine. I have no recollection of what Haiti looked like when we left. The only images I've seen over the years are images depicting a lifestyle of slum and poverty. These photos give me a totally different perspective of what Haiti could have looked like today had it not been for corruption and greed. In light of the recent earthquake, I'm hoping and praying for a "new" Haiti. One reflecting the beauty of our people and our culture.

[kreyolicious]

I envy you, Mr. Horberg. Wish I was the one who won the ebay Auction! Nice book. Best wishes with adapting the novel into a film. I'll be watching for it.

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what great collection of photos of my native country, please post more about from Haiti. How nostalgic.

[davek]

I agree with Kettlie. Beautiful pictures. I'm dtill on your site. Just can not get away.

[davek]

Sorry misspelled still.

[Nathalie Jolivert]

Hi, Is it possible to know who is the author of this book please? Thank you!

[קורס איפור]

Awesome pictures. The book is part of the investigation, who had gathered for the last few years.

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