PRIMITIF
PRIMITIF 2.4 (2024)60 x 50 cm – 23 x 20 inches
Oil on canvas and sequins, Bruges lace, antique banner, beads, silk, wool, and cotton.
Michel Lafleur is a portrait painter who began his painting career as an apprentice to a decorator of Tap-Taps, the ornately painted pick-up trucks that serve as public transport all over Haiti. He is now responsible for decorating many of the most spectacular barbershops in his neighbourhood.
Lafleur & Bogaert's new ‘PRIMITIF’ series is inspired by the work of Jan van Eyck, Myrlande Constant, Chéri Samba, Leah Gordon and Kehinde Wiley, among others. In this work, Margaret van Eyck's face is replaced by the face of a Haitian Black Madonna. The whole is framed by cut-up and modified antique church banners in the style of Haitian ‘Drapo Vodou’ textile art.
Michel Lafleur and Tom Bogaert characteristically affix their names and the artwork’s title to the front of the work.
In collaboration with lacemaker Inge De Zutter.