Jacques Hainard

Marianne Lehmann’s collection of salvaged vodou objects (alternative spelling of the creole word is deliberately chosen, since one of the main points of the exhibit is to look beyond the Hollywood cliché of voodoo) has been on display at the Ethnographic Museum in Stockholm, and I was very taken by it. I liked the respectful tone of the exhibition, addressing the fact that this is a living religion practiced by millions and a state religion in Haiti. I was very taken by the notion that vodou is so closely connected to struggle and living under oppression, that so much of it is about empowerment and community. And obviously, the objects themselves are often extremely powerful. Walking through the hall of life size Bizango (a secret vodou society) figures, made of cloth, bone, wood and shards of mirror it was impossible not to get deeply affected.

The catalog is not quite as good. What was eclectic in the exhibit passes into “all over the place” in the book. The texts are snippets of bigger works, and even though they make me eager to learn more, they come across as insufficient in giving a real sense of what vodou really is. I would have wanted more of an overview. The photos are amazing though, of course.… (meer)