Photo Credit: Jocelyn McCalla

To begin, the space was lovely. Soho Photo Gallery on 15 White Street in Manhattan had the standard gray-painted floor and white-washed wall loft-feel of the famous Soho gallery area but when you looked at the walls, you saw some incredible digital print photography that told of the keen artistic eye of both the curator and featured artists. Our featured guest, Tequila Minsky’s photo exhibit was located upstairs in a precarious catwalk of a show space that created a fantastic progression through her images. My favorite photo in Minsky’s exhibit titled Haiti = Survival (No Questions But) was that of a little boy laying across an elevated box as a young mother holds his head. Entitled “Injured Boy, Day After,” both young person’s aura in the photo evoke a sense of solemness and a painful darkness that emanates from lost innocence. The perspective of the photo is from below and the aggrandizing shot as well as the shroud-like medium of canvas for the print gives the impression of a modern photographic Pietà.

When asked why she chose the medium of canvas as her print surface Tequila asserted her dislike of frames for her work, and I must agree, to attempt to compartmentalize the powerful images of Post-Earthquake Haiti would only serve to detract from the intense reality and depth her photographs portrayed.

Tequila also showed a video of Fort Royale, a small rural town in Haiti that was damaged during the earthquake and where Two Little Flowers, a community school where Tequila is actively raising funds for, is located. She discussed the damage done to the town as well as its only school. The temperament of the room shifted, as it became very clear to everyone in the room that the impact of the earthquake on life in Haiti has not been resolved and for many, not yet diminished. As a small donation basket was passed around, the clear dedication and emotional attachment to Haiti of all of us in the room, regardless of origin or experience, was understood.

Following the discussion with Minsky, Ibi Zoboi, writer and coordinator of The Daughters of Anacaona Writing Project, graced us with readings of poetry from Haitian girls who participated in the 3-day intensive workshop in Port-au-Prince. The powerful works are published in an anthology that is being sold by HCX for $10 (Pick one up at our next event!).

After the readings we broke out into conversation with the artists and mingled to the rhythm of Buyu Ambroise and his band’s fantastic Haitian jazz beats. We listened and chatted late into the evening, and I’m sure it would have run longer if not for our sound curfew.