Sight & Sound: The Haiti Recordings by Alan Lomax
Haiti Cultural Exchange is thrilled to launch this open call for visual artists from Haiti and the Haitian Diaspora in the US to submit work in response to the unprecedented audio archives that ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax made in Haiti in 1936-1937.
In December 1936, at the urging of his colleague and friend Zora Neale Hurston, a 20-year-old Alan Lomax set off for Haiti under the auspices of the Library of Congress, determined to document the island’s music and ritual life. Over the next five months, he and his newlywed wife Elizabeth, alongside assistant Révolie Polinice, captured over fifteen hundred recordings — some fifty hours of sound — and six moving pictures, all of which were deposited into the Library of Congress upon their return.
What they brought back was an extraordinary collection of Haitian expressive culture: children’s songs and lullabies alongside rara, carnival, and ritual music; performances by Hurston herself; the first-ever recordings of celebrated classical pianist Ludovic Lamothe; and the first recording of a traditional Voudou ceremony. Taken together, they offer an unparalleled window into Afro-Caribbean diasporic traditions at a pivotal moment in their evolution.
For this open call opportunity, The Lomax Archive has selected 40 recordings from its extensive collection from Haiti for visual artists from the US and Haiti to explore and respond to with their own artwork.
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Deadline to submit: Monday June 1, 2026
Exhibition Dates: September 19 – October 18, 2026
More info on how to apply coming soon!
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Artists may submit up to four existing works or one proposal for work to be created or completed using the online open call form above.
Requirements, details, and upload instructions are included on the submission form in English and Creole.
Additionally, artists will be asked to participate in an artists talk and additional programming if possible.
Please contact archive@haiticulturalx.org with any questions.
