Rooted in the Haitian concept of the Lakou, this exhibition honors the interconnectedness of community, creativity, and commerce that defines the Haitian experience in both Haiti and the diaspora. The Lakou, historically a communal living space centered around shared land, labor, and cultural traditions, serves as a blueprint for how Haitian immigrants have navigated and thrived in new landscapes, especially in Brooklyn.

Canarsie, a small oceanside neighborhood home to generations of Haitian families, sits at the edge of the city, physically distant from the cultural hubs of downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan. Access to art, creative spaces, and cultural programming often feels out of reach. Yet, within these streets, homes, and businesses, a rich cultural legacy persists—one that deserves visibility, engagement, and celebration.

Brooklyn’s dollar vans, much like Haiti’s Tap Tap, are more than just transportation. These informal transit networks emerged in the 1980s during the New York Transit Strike, when public transportation came to a halt, leaving many commuters stranded. In response, independent drivers, many of them Caribbean immigrants, including a significant number of Haitians, began offering rides along major routes for a dollar.* Even after the strike ended, dollar vans remained an essential service in neighborhoods underserved by the MTA, such as Flatbush, East Flatbush, Canarsie, and Crown Heights.

More than just a means of travel, dollar vans have become a cultural institution, blasting Konpa, Soca, and Dancehall music, adorned with vibrant decals, and embodying the entrepreneurial spirit of the diaspora. Like the Tap Tap, they are not just about mobility—they are about community, economic self-sufficiency, and the ways immigrants reshape the cities they call home.

The Haitian marketplace operates on similar principles of resilience and interconnectedness. Whether in Port-au-Prince or Brooklyn, markets serve as both economic hubs and cultural gathering spaces. Vendors call out to passersby, children weave through crowded aisles, and the smell of griot and plantains fills the air. Goods are exchanged, but so are the day’s news, traditions, and dreams.

STR.DST.MRKT. reimagines the marketplace and the Tap Tap as spaces for artistic expression, storytelling, and cultural exchange. It is a shape-shifting platform that can transform into several spaces to fill many needs, with art at its core. As a gallery, a studio, or a market, it bridges communities and creative possibilities.

* In the 1980s, the New York City subway fare increased from 50 cents to 60 cents in June 1980, and then to $1 in 1986