Luhring Augustine is pleased to participate in The Art Show with a solo presentation of new work by the Haitian artist Myrlande Constant, curated by the painter Tomm El-Saieh.

Myrlande Constant (b. 1968, Port-au-Prince) is celebrated for her stunning, idiosyncratic, and genre-defying drapo Vodou (Vodou flags), small embroidered and sequined flags that have been produced in Haiti for generations as both religious objects and artworks. A self-taught flag-maker, Constant’s artistry is rooted in her skills as a seamstress and the beading techniques that she learned from her mother, who she assisted in creating elaborately beaded wedding dresses.

Constant began making unorthodox drapo Vodou over two decades ago, revolutionizing the artform and entering what had been, until the 1990s, a field completely dominated by men; she continues to push its boundaries in ambitious ways by deviating from the traditional materials and scale, and by incorporating buoyant colors and present-day subjects. In her large, densely textured flags, Constant draws equally from Vodou mythology, Haitian history, current events, and popular culture, balancing the spiritual with a contemporary world view. Her work has been greatly influential to a younger generation of artists in Haiti, many of whom have apprenticed under her.

For more information about our presentation, please contact Donald Johnson Montenegro at donald@luhringaugustine.com.