Kanaval: Vodou, Politics and Revolution on the Streets of Haiti

Vodou, sex, death and revolution are key ingredients in the stunning themes and visual imagery of the street theatre of Kanaval in Jacmel, Haiti, where the men drag-up, wear diabolic cow horns, whip lassos and carry around dismembered doll parts. Light years away from the sanitized corporate-sponsored tourist parades of carnival throughout the world, this event is a vessel for everyday Haitians to shock and sexualize through masquerade, to mock local politicians, replay the slave revolt that gave birth to Haiti, the world's first Black Republic, and to commune with the dead, with both personal and historical ancestors.

These photographs were taken in Haiti between 1995 -2009, the year before the devastating earthquake in Haiti. A percentage of the profits from this book will go to Ciné Institute, teaching video skills in Jacmel; and Brand Aid, rebuilding the artisanal community in Jacmel. Photography and oral histories by Leah Gordon, with essays by Madison Smartt Bell, Don Cosentino, Richard Fleming, Kathy Smith and Myron Beasley. Deluxe flexi-bound heavyweight cover, 160 pages.