Product Description
It's Cactus- Haitian Metal Art
Handcrafted Haitian Folk Art, Tree of Life with Flying Birds, Eco-Friendly Art 14"x34"
Made of recycled steel, this sculpture will rust over time if it is exposed to the elements. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, some people like the look of a weathered patina. If that isn't you, don't despair. Taking five minutes once a year to apply a spray-on enamel clear coat will keep your sculpture looking exactly the same as the day you bought it.
Artist Bio
Michel Brutal
Michel Brutall, son of Cecile Casseus and Saint-Clearly Brutal, is the eldest in a family of ten children. He blesses the work that enables him to send his two younger brothers and his own daughter to school. Though he seems to carry his burdens with joy, he says frankly, “This trade is very important for me. My family was completely poor and is thanks to this trade that I manage to support on my shoulders the loads of my family in general.”
Beginning with “the business of irons cut out” in 1987, Michel is grateful for the teachings of others, but regrets never having had the opportunity to study directly under Serge Jolimeau and Gabriel Bon Amie. His admiration for their work is unmistakable, however, as the theme of La Sirene and the dimensionality of his bird figures attest.
Now running his own workshop, he takes his inspiration from, “Nature like trees and that by the sea, such as mermaids, the tortoise, fish, and so much other.” As did many of his countrymen, he felt acutely the horrors of the January 2010 earthquake that, “devastated our beloved Haiti.” But with a confounding graciousness in the face of staggering hardship, he recognizes the favors that he has received in his life and seeks to return them in kind.