Overview:
After greater than a decade on the iconic 5 Myles Gallery in Crown Heights, Haiti Cultural Alternate (HCX) is transferring to a brand new dwelling at 35 Lafayette Avenue, close to the previous La Caye Restaurant. Based by Régine Roumain in 2009, HCX has lengthy served as a hub for Haitian arts and tradition in New York. The transfer, prompted by the sale of the 5 Myles constructing, marks each a return to the group’s roots in Fort Greene and a brand new chapter in Brooklyn’s evolving arts panorama.
For greater than a decade, Haiti Cultural Alternate (HCX) has welcomed celebrities, creatives, artists, actors and activists with one thing to say at its Crown Heights location, 5 Myles Gallery. Based in 2009 by neighborhood organizer Régine Roumain, HCX was created to fill a cultural hole within the New York Haitian neighborhood: a everlasting house devoted to Haitian artwork, craftsmanship and storytelling. Whereas particular person occasions celebrated Haiti via dance and humanities, there was no constant place the place Haitians may have interaction with the complete scope of the inventive expressions they needed to supply.
Nevertheless, after 14 years on the gallery, Roumain introduced final week that the nonprofit devoted to highlighting Haitian arts and tradition could be transferring to a brand new location many within the Brooklyn Haitian neighborhood could be acquainted with – 35 Lafayette Ave, subsequent to the now-shuttered La Caye Restaurant.
The restaurant, owned by Ralph Gemau, was a gathering house for the neighborhood and Haitian elected officers for years.
Roumain says their constituents have been excited by this location.
“It’s a return to Haitian house and as a part of probably the most outstanding cultural districts in Brooklyn. The accessibility and visibility present a singular alternative for Haitian tradition,” she says.
Whereas their transfer appears abrupt to some, Roumain says they knew in regards to the relocation for a while, after the proprietor of the constructing that homes 5 Myles Gallery shared in January 2024 that the constructing could be offered, with HCX needing to vacate by July 2025.
Roumain says she tried, unsuccessfully, to work it out with the brand new homeowners, inquiring about their new intentions for the gallery house. However amid ambiguous responses, it was clear the group wanted to discover a new dwelling, with no clear indication of whether or not they may ever return. The homeowners need to discover extra business alternatives.
A brand new chapter
Gentrification and actual property improvement are possible components in HCX’s relocation. Roumain famous the fast transformation of Crown Heights, with large-scale developments reshaping the neighborhood. However the transfer additionally stemmed from a extra private shift: the constructing’s earlier co-owner, Edith Ferber—an inheritor to the Herbert Ferber Belief and a longtime supporter of the humanities—handed away in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Along with her dying, the belief was required to settle her property, which included promoting the constructing, leaving HCX searching for a brand new dwelling.
“Brooklyn has undoubtedly been gentrifying and growing,” Roumain stated in an interview with The Haitian Occasions. “Actual property pursuits all through a number of neighborhoods, [with]Crown Heights being one of many massive neighborhoods which have had a lot bigger buildings being developed, modified the panorama.”
Along with the change in surroundings, HCX has additionally been impacted by the present political local weather. They’re at present experiencing funding challenges because of cuts to the Nationwide Endowment for the Arts, funding that they’ve acquired for years. It’s a “massive pressure on a small group,” Roumain stated.
The way forward for HCX, nevertheless, stays promising. The group launched a Thursday evening dwell music residency referred to as Mizik Ayiti, is at present interviewing artists for the subsequent Lakou Nou residency, and is growing a partnership with Kay Atizan to supply extra crafts on the market. The aim is to make HCX a go-to vacation spot for visible artwork and handmade items.
“What we’re doing is just not solely a few Black imaginative and prescient, however a worldwide imaginative and prescient that’s simply and actual,” stated Kassandra Khalil, HCX Program Supervisor. Khalil additionally highlighted the comfort of the brand new location, proper within the coronary heart of Brooklyn’s inventive district, plus its proximity to Atlantic Terminal.
Its new neighbors embody the Brooklyn Academy of Music, BRIC Arts Media, The Museum of Modern African Diasporan Arts and Spike Lee’s 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks manufacturing home.
“It’s an thrilling likelihood to emphasise that you just don’t should be massive to be within the Brooklyn arts district,” she stated.
The great thing about the brand new location is that HCX is again the place it started.
Roumain began the group out of her dwelling in Fort Greene. She additionally labored intimately with Ralph Glemau, one of many former homeowners of the house through the years. And, years later, HCX has returned across the nook from the place all of it started.
“We’re excited to be again,” Roumain stated. “It appears like a return but additionally a chance for one thing new.”