Before visiting Haiti, I never would have imagined that this tiny island nation has such an amazing artistic culture. The arts have not only survived poverty, earthquakes and other natural and political disasters, they have thrived and persevered just like the Haitian people.

What is the most astounding aspect of Haiti’s art community is the artisans’ unbelievable imagination and creativity to produce art from pretty much anything. Thrown out oil cans became the inspiration for a dynamic metal arts community. Old pieces of newspaper are striped, dyed and used to create papier-mâché masks, vases, floats, and other masterpieces. Even horns and bones from cattle that normally are thrown away, are dried and sanded to make gorgeous jewelry and furniture. The list is endless.

I had never heard of Horn and Bone art until I visited Haiti and met with Haitian Horn and Bone artist Christelle Paul, founder and chief designer at her workshop “Atelier Calla“ in Port-au-Prince.  Horn and Bone art began within the walls of Haiti’s prisons in the 1950s. To pass the time, the men in prison enjoyed playing games and they ingeniously discovered they could use old horns and bones to make pieces for card games. The art continued to evolve over the years being passed down from generation to generation.

Photo of Danica Kombol (Everywhere Agency) and Christelle Paul in Haiti.

Christelle has always been passionate about art yet she had pursed a career in banking. One day back in 2006 she was out shopping and noticed that there were a lot of products made out of horn and bone yet none that she really liked. This inspired her to start creating her own horn and bone jewelry based on the designs and ideas she desired. What began as a hobby suddenly grew into a passion. Yet the journey from being a full-time banker to full-time artist was a long one.

Some of Christelle’s beautiful creations.

A series of setbacks such as the 2010 earthquake stopped Christelle from following her dreams yet after a meeting with famous designer Donna Karan, Christelle decided to quit her job and pursue her passion for Bone and Horn art full-time. Her workshop Atelier Calla was opened in October of 2011 and today her team employs 7 artisans within the community who were once unemployed. Her mission is to provide fair wages and work opportunities to help young, unemployed people find a fulfilling, sustainable career in the arts. She is a remarkable woman.

We visited Christelle’s studio to learn more about this unique kind of art and also hear how her studio and workshop have helped other Haitians pursue a career in art and provide for their family.

Artisans at work at Christelle Paul’s studio, Atelier Calla

In Haiti, many times art is made from recycled or discarded materials and Horn and Bone art is the perfect example.  Artisans purchase the horn and bone from slaughterhouses once all of the meat is taken and skin sent away to leather manufacturers. They use almost the entire cow to create incredibly, beautiful art. It is astounding!

The raw materials are horns and bones from cows.

Macy’s Heart of Haiti: Homemade Horn and Bone Art: 

In this short video, Christelle explains the process of creating jewelry and home decor pieces from the horn of cows. Her workshop in Port-au-Prince employs local artists and through this video, she explains the technique behind her creations that are sold in stores and online at Macy’s for the Heart of Haiti line.

I enjoyed watching the artisans work. It is amazing that bones and horns can be transformed into such beautiful pieces of art. I was so impressed.

Artisans at Christelle’s studio working on Horn and Bone Art.

The final products are spectacular. Here are a few of my favorites:

Dor knob

Door knob

Door knob

Table

Table

Running your own studio in Haiti is difficult and unfortunately not many people are able to succeed. Thankfully Christelle Paul has the rare combination of artistic and business aucumen to be able to pull it off. There are many obstacles to overcome working in Haiti. The economy is quite volatile and there must be a market for your art to ensure that the products remain in vogue. Furthermore, the infrastructure of Haiti makes entrepreneurship very hard. Christelle also says that it is extremely hard to be taken seriously in a male-driven society. However, once they realize that she can talk angles, technology, geometry and all of the other subjects needed to master the horn and bone industry they have no choice but to take her more seriously and give her respect.

Today, Christelle’s studio produces some of the finest horn and bone art in Haiti. It just goes to show what determination, perseverance and passion can do to change the world. Christelle’s products can be purchased at Macy’s Heart of Haiti.

Author’s note: This post is a continuation of my February trip to Haiti as part of a #Bloggers4Haiti trip on behalf of Heart of Haiti. To view all posts in this series, click here.