Van Lévé: Sovereign Caribbean Visions Take Shape at Harvard

Charting a New Geopolitical Horizon

Harvard University's Hutchins Centre for African and African American Research is preparing a substantial survey titled An Introduction to Van Lévé: Sovereign Visions from the Creole and Maroon Caribbean and Amazonia. Running from late September two thousand twenty-six through early June two thousand twenty-seven, the presentation occupies the Alain Locke Gallery of African and African American Art. The show emerges under the curation of Claire Tancons, who was invited to helm the project by Cécile Fromont, professor of art history and architecture at Harvard and faculty director of the hosting space.

The exhibition maps a quarter-century of creative output originating from Guadeloupe, Martinique, Guyane, and Haiti. Its chronological framework begins following France's historic legislative acknowledgment of slavery constituting a crime against humanity in two thousand and one, extending right up to the present day. Rather than treating these territories as peripheral, the curatorial approach centres distinctly Caribbean methodologies. It interrogates how creators navigate the rigid frameworks of French citizenship while asserting independent control over complex intellectual and cultural inheritances. The inquiry extends further, probing what these practices reveal about political independence and creative freedom amid shifting imperial structures.

Materialising Postcolonial Futures

Tancons frames the gathering through questions of resilience and forward momentum. She considers how the works capture the interplay between natural forces and socio-political turbulence, suggesting that environmental volatility and historical trauma might actually sketch out pathways toward future self-determination. The presentation responds by weaving together established art historical trajectories, regional knowledge exchange, and collective aspirations for autonomy.

The roster encompasses a diverse cohort of practitioners including Mathieu Kleyebe Abonnenc, Franky Amété, Raphaël Barontini, Minia Biabiany, Jean-Marc Bullet, Ernest Breleur, Gaëlle Choisne, Ronald Cyrille, Kenny Dunkan, Arthur Francietta, Gwladys Gambie, David Gumbs, Clémence Lollia Hilaire, Fabiola Jean-Louis, Louisa Marajo, Tessa Mars, Manuel Mathieu, Jimmy Robert, Cédrine Scheidig, and Hervé Télémaque. Alongside contemporary paintings, sculptures, and installations, visitors will encounter archival artefacts drawn from the Harvard Art Museums, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, and Hamilton College. These rarely displayed historical pieces ground the modern selections within deeper temporal layers.

Spatial configuration falls to Gia Wolff Studio, while the programme also debuts an audio composition exploring Caribbean temporalities, crafted by Michael Roch and Jordan Beal. This installation functions as a preliminary chapter within a broader editorial and curatorial initiative funded by the Ford Foundation.

Academic Dialogue and Institutional Backing

Complementing the visual programme, a scholarly conversation will unfold on the evening of September twenty-ninth within the Hutchins Centre. Professor Fromont will chair a discussion pairing Tancons with Tao Leigh Goffe from Hunter College and Oliver Wunsch of Boston College, fostering cross-institutional analysis of the featured practices.

Financial and logistical support derives from several cultural bodies, including EXTEMPORA, Villa Albertine, the Trampoline Association, and the regional cultural departments governing Martinique and Guadeloupe. The hosting gallery also provides essential institutional backing.

Tancons, whose formative years were spent in Guadeloupe before relocating to Paris, brings extensive experience organising biennials and festival commissions across New Orleans, Gwangju, Sharjah, and Paris. Her research consistently examines diasporic memory, civic ritual, and performance traditions, often backed by fellowships from the Warhol Foundation, Creative Capital, and the Prince Claus Fund. Through this survey, she continues to map the evolving contours of Atlantic modernity.