Solidarity with Grand'Rue
On the night of February 29, 2020, a fire destroyed 21 workshops and 12 homes for artists and artisans on the Grand'Rue. These important players in the artistic community of the Grand'Rue then found themselves without a home or means of production to ensure the maintenance of their artistic practice, their economic activity and the care of their families. This fire affected 33 affected households, i.e. 58 people, thus worsening the situation of a community living in very precarious conditions, at the dawn of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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A collective approach in favor of disaster victims
In the aftermath of the disaster, personalities and cultural institutions in Haiti and abroad met to jointly define a strategy of action. Two crowdfunding campaigns were launched in parallel in Europe and North America through Haiti Futur. To the sums collected, were added the contributions of the Carasso Foundation (France) and the FOKAL and the technical support of the Culture Creation Foundation and Akoustic Prod.
The project ended with the following achievements:
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rehousing of affected families;
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the restoration of the 19 artists' studios;
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the distribution of support for the return to economic activity for small traders;
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the relocation of artist Guyodo's studio;
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the exhibition-sale Rél.
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A UMANUM expert, then deployed at the Art Center, designed the project and its implementation strategy, coordinated fundraising efforts and guided the steering committee.
