Vodou is Haiti's mirror. Its arts and rituals reflect the difficult, brilliant history of seven million people, whose ancestors were brought from Africa to the Caribbean in bondage. In 1791 these Africans began the only successful national slave revolt in history. In 1804 they succeeded in creating the world's first Black republic: the only one in this hemisphere where all the citizens were free. Their success inspired admiration, fear and scorn in the wider world. Cut off from Euro-American support, Haitians managed to created their own dynamic "Creole" society-one rooted in Africa but responsive to all that was encountered in their new island home.

Vodou is the Creole religion. Like the Haitian people, Vodou spirits came from Africa, and they have been profoundly affected by slavery and hard won freedom. To honor and serve these spirits, Haitians create ceremonial art based on African models and influenced by Catholic, Masonic and other spiritual traditions. The sacred arts of Vodou are the outstanding achievement of a great people and their incomparable gift to the world.

However, Vodou is more than a religion—it is a way of life which has inspired Haitian artists in many different media. After the Second World War, the work of Haitian artists came to the attention of foreign dealers and collectors who spoke of a "Haitian Renaissance". Two of the most celebrated artists of this generation, painter Hector Hyppolite and sculptor Georges Liautaud, were featured in Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou. So too were artists from the present: Antoine Oleyant, whose masterful flags were inspired by Vodou dreams and visions; and Pierrot Barra, who in collaboration with his wife Marie Cassaise creates Vodou fantasies out of recycled market scraps. The Haitian Renaissance was also brought up to date in the large canvases of Edouard Duval-Carrie, whose surrealism accurately portrays the nightmarish qualities of recent Haitian politics.

	Flag (drapo) for Danbala by Antoine Oleyant

The Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou exhibition, hosted by the American Museum of Natural History from October 1998 until January 1999, explored the arts and culture of the Afro-Caribbean religion of Vodou. More than 500 objects—from sequined flags to medicine packets—were featured. Also highlighted were prototypes of several altars, each honoring different religious deities.

This online companion to Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou is intended to capture the essence of the past exhibition as well as the living, breathing spirit of Vodou today. You can click on many of the artworks found on this site to view a larger version of that image.