Dramatic, confrontational images of a country enduring inconceivable upheaval and disaster
Bruce Gilden first traveled to Haiti in 1984 for the famous Mardi Gras festivities. There he discovered an impoverished territory in the grip of numerous natural disasters but charged with a unique energy. True to form, Gilden immediately departed from the beaten track, choosing to roam the length and breadth of the island along serpentine paths that led him to meet people from the four corners of the island, and into situations that few would choose to encounter. Gilden was to visit this country that he loves so much on 20 further occasions, tirelessly documenting the everyday lives of Haitians, their history and terrain. From vendors at the markets of major cities to its nightlife and funeral ceremonies, Gilden strives to take stock of Haitian culture and its rich visual diversity. Images from the series were first published as a slim monograph by Dewi Lewis in 1996; the book won the European Publishers Award for Photography. Atelier EXB’s beautifully printed new volume greatly expands the series with previously unseen images comprising nearly half of the book. Bruce Gilden (born 1946) has produced long and detailed photographic projects in New York, Haiti, France, Ireland, India, Russia, Japan, England and the US. He has published 28 monographs, among them, Facing New York (1992), Bleus (1994), Haiti (1996); After the Off (1999), Go (2000), Coney Island (2002), A Beautiful Catastrophe (2004), Foreclosures (2013), A Complete Examination of Middlesex (2014), Lost and Found (2019), Cherry Blossom (2021), Black Country (2022) and The Circuit (2022).
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
L'Oeil de la Photographie
Jacques Naudet
Atelier EXB’s beautifully printed new volume greatly expands the series with previously unseen images comprising nearly half of the book.
L'Oeil de la Photographie
Jacques Naudet
Atelier EXB’s beautifully printed new volume greatly expands the series with previously unseen images comprising nearly half of the book.
Blind
Iris Mandret
The softness and intensity of black and white lightens the harsh reality of violence, leaving only the strange poetry of the frame.
Blind
Iris Mandret
The softness and intensity of black and white lightens the harsh reality of violence, leaving only the strange poetry of the frame.
Photograph
Vince Aletti
Mostly because of all the conflicting emotions and issues involved, his Haiti work is among his best. Every face in a crowd is eloquent, and individuals are shockingly present. Not necessarily happy to be there, but determined to stand their ground.
photo-eye
Blake Andrews
In photo after photo they stand their ground, glare back, and claim dignified self-possession. They’re a force for his lens to reckon with, even more so than New Yorkers.
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Featured spreads are from Atelier EXB’s new, expanded edition of the 1996 Bruce Gilden classic, Haiti. Featuring 75 black-and-white photographs—more than half of which have never been published before—taken over more than 20 trips to the country since 1984, this embossed hardcover with tipped on cover image makes an indelible impression of a spellbinding island culture in constant upheaval. “In truth, a place in agony,” Louis-Philippe Dalembert writes, “where gangs have replaced the dictatorship in a macabre game; where the people, weary, now and then trade their martyr’s mantle for the blind vigilante’s robes. Where the elements have always chided with their own distress. A place accustomed to many and various catastrophes. This is how the foreigner sees this land. … And yet, you tell him, this country is hanging on to its last breath. Teeming, throbbing under the sun, sex aroused, bursts of life in mourning garb, relentlessly trying to mute the trumpets of death. Eppur si muove. And yet, the country is still going. In the eyes of the women and men who inhabit it. In the smiles of its children. In the hope deeply rooted in their hearts, which refuse to give up. Even backed up against the wall. In their songs. In their dances. In their everyday words. In their ability to swap the havoc of distress for stardust.” continue to blog
Featured spreads are from Atelier EXB’s new, expanded edition of the 1996 Bruce Gilden classic, Haiti. Featuring 75 black-and-white photographs—more than half of which have never been published before—taken over more than 20 trips to the country since 1984, this embossed hardcover with tipped on cover image makes an indelible impression of a spellbinding island culture in constant upheaval. “In truth, a place in agony,” Louis-Philippe Dalembert writes, “where gangs have replaced the dictatorship in a macabre game; where the people, weary, now and then trade their martyr’s mantle for the blind vigilante’s robes. Where the elements have always chided with their own distress. A place accustomed to many and various catastrophes. This is how the foreigner sees this land. … And yet, you tell him, this country is hanging on to its last breath. Teeming, throbbing under the sun, sex aroused, bursts of life in mourning garb, relentlessly trying to mute the trumpets of death. Eppur si muove. And yet, the country is still going. In the eyes of the women and men who inhabit it. In the smiles of its children. In the hope deeply rooted in their hearts, which refuse to give up. Even backed up against the wall. In their songs. In their dances. In their everyday words. In their ability to swap the havoc of distress for stardust.” continue to blog
FORMAT: Hbk, 8.5 x 11.5 in. / 144 pgs / 75 b&w. LIST PRICE: U.S. $55.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $79 ISBN: 9782365113779 PUBLISHER: Atelier EXB AVAILABLE: 11/7/2023 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Active AVAILABILITY: In stock TERRITORY: NA LA
Published by Atelier EXB. Text by Louis-Philippe Dalembert.
Dramatic, confrontational images of a country enduring inconceivable upheaval and disaster
Bruce Gilden first traveled to Haiti in 1984 for the famous Mardi Gras festivities. There he discovered an impoverished territory in the grip of numerous natural disasters but charged with a unique energy. True to form, Gilden immediately departed from the beaten track, choosing to roam the length and breadth of the island along serpentine paths that led him to meet people from the four corners of the island, and into situations that few would choose to encounter.
Gilden was to visit this country that he loves so much on 20 further occasions, tirelessly documenting the everyday lives of Haitians, their history and terrain. From vendors at the markets of major cities to its nightlife and funeral ceremonies, Gilden strives to take stock of Haitian culture and its rich visual diversity.
Images from the series were first published as a slim monograph by Dewi Lewis in 1996; the book won the European Publishers Award for Photography. Atelier EXB’s beautifully printed new volume greatly expands the series with previously unseen images comprising nearly half of the book.
Bruce Gilden (born 1946) has produced long and detailed photographic projects in New York, Haiti, France, Ireland, India, Russia, Japan, England and the US. He has published 28 monographs, among them, Facing New York (1992), Bleus (1994), Haiti (1996); After the Off (1999), Go (2000), Coney Island (2002), A Beautiful Catastrophe (2004), Foreclosures (2013), A Complete Examination of Middlesex (2014), Lost and Found (2019), Cherry Blossom (2021), Black Country (2022) and The Circuit (2022).
