In 2004 my father died and I could no longer continue to attend school. I had deep regrets and suffered terribly for a year as a result of this turn of events. I wanted to escape and even give up on life. I had reached a stage of grave discouragement. My saving grace was to painting to fill the void brought on by my situation. So I got the materials needed to paint.
My wanderings around the world have permeated my memory and my spirit with various subjects. It took all my effort to not remember the death of my father, but to focus instead on the events and actions of the peasants, working in the fields of life, and on the way I feel the world through all I encounter. When I do this, it is as if my father is still alive.
I paint when the urge strikes me. At times, I go for months without touching a brush and then suddenly, I paint five or six paintings in two weeks. I must confess to you that over the years I have discovered a great technique that allows me to paint very quickly with acrylics.
I like to paint landscapes, with news stories, still-life, and even Marines. The bulk of my work comes from my imagination, especially when I paint women.
I have already had two solo exhibitions and have participated in many others. My first exhibition was on 18 October 2004, at the University of the King Henry Christophe. My second exhibition was held at the Alliance Française of Cap-Haitien, June 8, 2007. At that showing, I received a plaque of honor and certificate for my work.
In 2008, I also showed my work at an event at a medical center in Gallemand, in the northeast of Haiti. The exhibition was organized by a staff member and the event was called, ”American Medical Collaborators for Healthcare in Haiti” lead by Dr. Policap.
There, I managed to sell one of my old 30” x 40” canvases for $500. The painting was titled: “The root of the independence of Haiti.”
My style of painting is to put all my power into the subject matter and the technique. I recognize that a painting is an aesthetic beauty, and life has its true meaning to love painting. To me, nothing is more beautiful in the world than to make a work of Art.
Have you seen anything more beautiful in your life than a layer of the sun under the tropics, a chain of mountains in the snowy times, the Grand Palais Sans Souci, the Citadel, the fury of the wind, large waterfalls in Saudo, the beautiful Cave of Dondon, where peasants do their laundry and swim before they return to their home?
Most of us have a moment of Ecstasy in the heart at the beauty of nature. If we can, we like to spend our holidays in a paradise framework, and we try to fix the more impressive performances in our lives on film. Capturing the beauty in life, in nature and in the world that envelopes us, is what I do.
The next time that you contemplate the magnificence of unspoiled nature, ask yourself questions: If all the works presented in an art gallery were signed “anonymous,” do you not have the feeling that something is missing? If you were enraptured by the quality and the beauty of an exhibition wouldn’t you like to know the names of the author?
Then, should we just admire the splendor of the land without seeking to know what the Creator produced?
I am one of these sources by which you can know of the Creator through my work.
Contact César Idelin on: Facebook, LinkedIn.
delincesar@yahoo.fr
phone: (509) 4608-3864/ 3821-0944
Cesar Idelin is a well-known artist in Milot, Haiti. He painted the walls outside Hôpital Sacré Coeur and also runs an organization to help orphans in northern Haiti.
