Open AccessThe art of postcolonial politics in the age of empire: Haiti's object lesson at the World's Columbian Exposition
Author(s) -
Asquith Wendy
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
historical research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.203
H-Index - 21
eISSN - 1468-2281
pISSN - 0950-3471
DOI - 10.1111/1468-2281.12232
Subject(s) - solidarity , empire , politics , exposition (narrative) , object (grammar) , pavilion , exhibition , history , state (computer science) , conformity , sociology , anthropology , art history , ancient history , art , political science , law , archaeology , literature , linguistics , philosophy , algorithm , computer science
This article explores how representatives of the Caribbean's first postcolonial state undertook the project of displaying Haitian nationhood during the age of empire. It challenges current understandings of Haiti's pavilion as a site of African diasporic solidarity, through an examination of the artworks featured within Haiti's object lesson. Haiti's display was strategically constructed to promote the nation's economy, express diplomatic conformity with the current world order and suggest pan‐American affinity while maintaining links to French cultural traditions. Through new archival research, this article contributes to a reconsideration of the significance of world's fairs themselves as sites for postcolonial display.