Haiti’s late 19th and early 20th century Gingerbread Houses embody  the full potential of the Kreyol, and are perhaps the most exemplary body of work to date of African American architecture.  They are intensely expressive, structurally ingenious and adaptively responsive to the extremes of the Caribbean climate.

Although their formal sophistication marks them as works of the highest artistic quality, in their fundamental practicality and structural transparency they drink deeply from the Haitian vernacular, particularly the “Kay Chamhot” (house with tall rooms).  Their creative synthesis of African, European and American influences sets an ambitious benchmark for the country’s future environmental and cultural development.

~PATTERNS~

~PLANS FOR HAITI~