“Iris” aka Genevieve Lahens Esper

1959 – present

Iris was born in Port-au-Prince and is considered a Haitian Modernist with formal training at the L’Ecole Beaux-Art in Paris. Her work is strongly influenced by Byzantine and medieval architectural styles, bold colors, and folk art symbolism of the Saint-Soleil school.  The Sun Sentinel once wrote, describing the depth of her work, “Before Genevieve Esper became a noted artist, before traveling the world, studying in Paris and showing her work in South Florida and New York, she was a young girl in Haiti, absorbing its colors, its sights, and its moods.  In her art, she has never left home…” You read so much about what is bad in Haiti, but I can tell you, there is joy in that place,” Esper says, “And there is much beauty.”