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Biography Gerard Fortune, commonly known by his first name Gerard, is a Haitian artist. His exact date of birth is uncertain, though Gerard has said he was alive during the Haitian dictatorship of Jean Claude Duvalier, which would put his age at about 50-60 years old.1 Gerard was born and raised in the city of Petionville, a suburb of the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince.

Style and Early Works As an adult, Gerard worked as a pastry chef before starting to paint in 1978. 2 While working in the kitchen of a private home, he saw paintings by both Haitian and international artists. He decided to try it himself. His first painting was an 8x10 inch canvas of Jesus on the cross. 3 He continued making new pieces, always in naive style – a brightly colored, childlike, style of painting. Eventually, Gerard began taking his work to Issa El-Saieh, a former orchestra leader in Haiti who went on to become one of Haiti’s major gallery owners. 4 The subjects of Gerard’s paintings are vast, ranging from everyday matters, Biblical scenes, portraits of Haitian generals and politicians, animals and athletes. Gerard himself has said, “I’m obligated to paint vodou and Jesus and flowers and the sea. And villages and anything that comes to mind.” “God tells me what to paint, the feeling of each painting.” He says that God gives hope to him. “Inspiration comes from God at all hours.” 5

Exhibits Gerard is one of the most prolific and collectible painters in modern Haiti and his work has been exhibited internationally. Two of the places that include Gerard’s work in their permanent collections are Ramapo College, New Jersey and the Waterloo Center for the Arts in Iowa. 6

List of Works Title: Famille Bebe Doc Medium: Oil on canvas Date: c. 1986 Donor: Gift of Barbara Skapa, 2015.0313 Location: Waterloo Center for the Arts, Waterloo, IA Description: Depicts a large white building with an orange picket fence in front of it. There is also seven figures scattered throughout the scene, and hills and trees in the background.

Title: Girls Waving Flags Medium: Paint on canvas Date: c. 2005 Donor: Gift of Ted Frankel & Bill Gilmore, 2015.0198 Location: Waterloo Center for the Arts, Waterloo, IA Description: Two girls, one in a red dress, the other in a blue dress, stand against a colorful background waving flags.

Title: Jonah And The Whale Medium: Paint on canvas Date: n.d. Donor: Gift of Susan Sutton Robinson, 2007.0602 Location: Waterloo Center for the Arts, Waterloo, IA Description: This painting depicts the prophet Jonah being swallowed by a massive, pink fish. The background is lime green and dotted with pink flowers.

Title: Jesus King Medium: Oil on canvas Date: n.d. Donor: Gift of Janet Feldman, 2007.0190 Location: Waterloo Center for the Arts, Waterloo, IA

Description: Jesus is painted wearing a crown and dressed in an orange robe with a red sash. He is portrayed coming out a cluster of clouds while a group of ten people look up.

References 1 Maggie Steber, accessed March 5, 2018. http://indigoarts.com/artists/gerard-fortune. 2 Steber, accessed March 5, 2018. http://indigoarts.com/artists/gerard-fortune. 3 Seldon Rodman, Where Art is Joy: Haitian Art, the First 40 Years (New York: Ruggles de LaTour, 1988), 215-217. 4 Steber, accessed March 5, 2018. http://indigoarts.com/artists/gerard-fortune. 5 Steber, accessed March 5, 2018. http://indigoarts.com/artists/gerard-fortune. 6 Steber, accessed March 5, 2018. http://indigoarts.com/artists/gerard-fortune. 7 Steber, accessed March 5, 2018. http://indigoarts.com/artists/gerard-fortune.

Additional Sources Gerard Fortune, (Collection Monnin: Petionville, Haiti, 2014). Philippe Bécoulet, Dialogue du Réel et de L’imaginaire,( Asssociation Franco-Haitienne, Haiti,1990).