28450: Hermantin ( News)'Haitian art could be dying,' an expert laments (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>


Posted on Sun, Jun. 11, 2006


HAITI AND ITS PAINTERS | A COLLECTOR LOOKS BACK

'Haitian art could be dying,' an expert laments
A multi-talented art collector who lives in Plantation keeps his connection 
with Haiti strong, despite the distance.
BY CANDICE RUSSELL
Special to The Miami Herald

Haitian-born photographer, art collector and violinist Reynolds Rolles hasn't 
been to his island country since 1992. But in many ways, Rolles, who lives in 
Plantation, underscores his connection with Haiti with the paintings on the 
walls of his home and the Haitian music he seeks out at local festivals and 
clubs.

''This is what I grew up with and what I enjoy,'' said Rolles, who was born in 
St. Marc, where his accountant father was the mayor. ``Haiti is different than 
anywhere else. Most Haitian people should cherish what they have and do their 
best to preserve the culture. I grew up with an artistic family. When I came to 
the U.S. in 1968, I studied art history, but I wasn't interested in European 
art. I wanted to specialize in Haitian or Latin American art. But at that time, 
there were no books or courses to guide me.''

A friendship with writer Michel-Philippe Lerebours led to a deepening 
appreciation of Haitian art. Eventually, they collaborated on a set of books, 
Haiti and Its Painters of 1804 to 1980: Sufferings and Hopes of People, 
published in French in 1989. The two-volume project, in which Rolles' 
photography appeared, was a labor of love.

''I took 5,000 slides that we whittled down to 249 for the books,'' he said. 
``I would like to translate it into English and print the images in color.''

With a 25-year career at Condé Nast Publications in New York City, Rolles has 
done stints as art production assistant, photographer and graphic designer for 
Vogue magazine. His own personal collection of photos, framed for his music 
room, show a master's touch in handling the chiaroscuro of light and dark in 
strong shadows and shafts of sunlight.

His favorite subjects include revealing personality portraits and dynamic 
street scenes, including roller skaters in mid-zoom.

''If I had a choice, I'd like to play in an orchestra, be a photographer like I 
was, and have an art gallery,'' said Rolles, although he keeps a hand in all 
three pursuits, despite a full-time job as sales coordinator at a 
Sherwin-Williams paint store in Fort Lauderdale.

Rolles played the violin as a child ''as a fun thing,'' he said, rather than 
oriented toward a career.

''There was no orchestra in Haiti,'' Rolles said. ``I feel sorry that I didn't 
know I could continue with the violin when I came to New York. Then other 
things in life came up. I still play with a quartet here.''

His daughter, Tahnee, is an event coordinator.

''She'd like me to work with her as a photographer,'' he said. ``I'd like to go 
back to freelancing for writers, painters and magazines covering cultural 
events.''

Selling art from home keeps Rolles connected to the Haitian expatriate artists 
he befriended over the years in New York, including Luckner Lazard, Dominique 
Volcy and Rafael Denis, among many others. He fears the young generation of 
painters in Haiti are so poor that they have to care more about daily survival 
than creative expression.

''Haitian art could be dying,'' Rolles said. ``LaFortune Felix could be the 
last primitive artist as art moves toward copying what came before and the 
decorative.''

To see the art Rolles has for sale, call him at 954-581-3521.