A new public art exhibition titled "Ansamn" (meaning "Together" in Haitian Creole) opens April 25 in Brooklyn, featuring the work of Haitian-American artist Mel Isidor. Her mixed-media collage, part of her "Roots" series, honors her late aunt Yolette and incorporates archival family photos with original photography from a road trip through Haiti. The month-long billboard exhibit, presented by SaveArtSpace and curated by Yvena Despagne of Art x Ayiti, runs during Haitian Heritage Month.
The exhibition matters because it challenges reductive perceptions of Haitian art as solely folkloric or naïve, instead highlighting contemporary, layered expressions of Haitian identity. By placing these works on public billboards in Brooklyn, the project brings diasporic narratives into everyday urban space, amplifying underrepresented voices and redefining how Haitian stories are told through modern artistic mediums.