Duffaut, Prefete (1923 - 2012)



Préfète Duffaut is a major figure in Haitian painting. Born on 1 st January 1923 in Jacmel, he develops an imaginary city of style that earned him national and international recognition. 

During his youth he worked with his father on boat building sites. Shortly after the Art Center opened in 1944, DeWitt Peters, intrigued by his drawings, asked Rigaud Benoît to meet him in Jacmel. He was selected with the artists Castera Bazile, Philomé Obin, Rigaud Benoît and Wilson Bigaud, to paint the frescoes of the Episcopal Cathedral of Sainte-Trinité destroyed during the earthquake of January 12, 2010. 

Préfète Duffaut says that his vocation as a painter was inspired by a vision of the virgin. This one would have appeared to him at the top of a mountain, ordering him to paint his city. In the 1960s, Préfète Duffaut moved with his family to the Carrefour-Feuilles neighborhood in Port-au-Prince. He made the imaginary city his favorite subject and he also painted paintings of mystical inspiration. 

In more than 70 years of career, the artist has produced an immense work, exhibited in galleries and museums around the world including the Musée du College Saint-Pierre in Port-au-Prince, the Grand Palais in Paris, the Davenport Museum , the Waterloo Museum and the MoMa of New York.

Préfète Duffaut died on October 6, 2012 at the age of 89.

 


Araigne-Etoile du Erzulie Freda, 1963
Araigne-Etoile du Erzulie Freda, 1963
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Houngan, mid 1960s
Houngan, mid 1960s
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Tampa Museum of Art
Three Vodou Spirits, 1948
Three Vodou Spirits, 1948
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Dr. Siri von Reis
Spider Web, n.d.
Spider Web, n.d.
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Secret de majie (Secret Magic), 1952
Secret de majie (Secret Magic), 1952
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Nativity, n.d.
Nativity, n.d.
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Fondation Marie et Georges S. Nader
Mystic Dream, 1976
Mystic Dream, 1976
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Roi Lucifer e pitié, n.d.
Roi Lucifer e pitié, n.d.
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Maitre Grand Bois, n.d.
Maitre Grand Bois, n.d.
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Carnaval de Jacmel, 1951
Carnaval de Jacmel, 1951
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Milwaukee Art Museum
Spider Queen, 1958
Spider Queen, 1958
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Milwaukee Art Museum
Papa Marinette de la Valle, 1954
Papa Marinette de la Valle, 1954
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Damballah (Tresor la famille), 1993
Damballah (Tresor la famille), 1993
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Le Centre dArt
Guede Zarignin, 2004
Guede Zarignin, 2004
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Le Centre dArt
Saint Francis, 1955
Saint Francis, 1955
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Milwaukee Art Museum
Trois femmes d'Egypt, 1964
Trois femmes d'Egypt, 1964
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Island On Fire: Jonathan Demme
Untitled, 1982
Untitled, 1982
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Heaven and Hell, 1960
Heaven and Hell, 1960
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Waterloo Center For the Arts
Imaginary City (Untitled)
Imaginary City (Untitled)
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Marcus Rediker Collection
Morning Village
Morning Village
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Franciscus Collection
Mountain Town over Sea
Mountain Town over Sea
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Franciscus Collection
The Queen, 1955
The Queen, 1955
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Drs. Roslyn and Lloyd Siegel Collection
Imaginary Village, 1981
Imaginary Village, 1981
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Fondation Marie et Georges S. Nader
Imaginary Village with Baby Jesus, 1970s
Imaginary Village with Baby Jesus, 1970s
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Gessen Collection
Vodou Tower with Dambalahs, 1998
Vodou Tower with Dambalahs, 1998
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Gessen Collection
Harbour, n.d.
Harbour, n.d.
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Beverly and John Fox Sullivan
Vodou City, 1980
Vodou City, 1980
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Waterloo Center For the Arts
Sin, 1953
Sin, 1953
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Museum of Modern Art
Met Gran Bwa, 1954
Met Gran Bwa, 1954
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Ceremonir Simbi Deuaux, 1952
Ceremonir Simbi Deuaux, 1952
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Island On Fire: Jonathan Demme
The Port, 1987
The Port, 1987
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Pia and Gerald Alexis Collection
City and Harbor, 1953
City and Harbor, 1953
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Hirshhorn
Damballah, 2007
Damballah, 2007
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Beverly and John Fox Sullivan
Jacmel Harbor, 1964
Jacmel Harbor, 1964
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Beverly and John Fox Sullivan