Madsen Mompremier (born 1952) is a Haitian oil painter, known for his depictions of Vodou gods (

lwa , also called loa, are spirits in the African diasporic religion of Haitian Vodou and Dominican Vudú. They have also been incorporated into some revivalist forms of Louisiana Voodoo. Many of the lwa derive their identities in part from deitie ...

Biography

Mompremier was born in 1952 in Gonaives, Haiti. In 1972, he moved to

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

to work as a tailor; just one year later, he began apprenticing under Gerard Valcin, pursuing interests in drawing and painting he had had since a young age. Originally, Mompremier painted images of daily life in Haiti. However, in 1975, he found his own means of expression in representing the Vodou ''lwa''.. In 1978, Mompremier met his wife,

Erzulie Erzulie (sometimes spelled Erzili or Èzili) is a family of loa, or spirits, in Vodou. Overview The Erzulie is a family of loa that are often associated with water (fluidity), femininity, and feminine bodies. They are one of the only group of ...

, who began painting under his direction; she passed in the earthquake of 2010. Mompremier is known worldwide for his art and, as such, has displayed his work internationally in Germany, France, and the United States.

Principal exhibitions

*2011 - ''Art and the Unbreakable Spirit of Haiti,''

Fowler Museum The Fowler Museum at UCLA (commonly known as The Fowler, and formerly Museum of Cultural History and Fowler Museum of Cultural History) is a museum on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) which explores art and material ...

, Los Angeles, California, USA *2013 - ''Five Decades of Haitian Painting'',

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

, Austin, Texas, USA

References

External links

Galerie Monnin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mompremier, Madsen 1952 births Haitian artists Living people