Description:

Hector Hyppolite
Haitian, 1894-1948
"Hogoun Chango"
oil on masonite
c. 1946/47, signed lower right, titled lower left, inscribed and "Haitian Center of New York at Carlebach, New York, NY" exhibition label with artist and title en verso, "John Tucker Fine Arts, Savannah, GA" and "The House of Heydenryk, New York, NY" labels on backing paper, framed.

Provenance: Estate of Charles Adams Baker; "Latin American Paintings, Drawings & Sculptures," Christie's, New York, NY, Nov. 19-20, 1991, lot 225; John Tucker Fine Arts, Savannah, GA, Oct. 2005; Private Collection, LA.

Note: Hector Hyppolite, one of the most famous Haitian painters and considered the "Grand Maître of Haitian Art," produced a body of impressive works detailing the cultural practices and beliefs of his native country. He was rumored to be a third generation Vodou priest, though it is possible this persona was created to boost his art sales. His popularity reached a wider audience in the 1940s after surrealist Andre Breton purchased one of his paintings and dubbed him "the guardian of a secret," spearheading the occidental appreciation for "Haitian naïve" painting. At the time, Hyppolite's works were being exhibited alongside his contemporaries such as Philome Obin, Catera Bazile and Rigaud Benoit at the Centre d'Art in Port-au-Prince.

Hyppolite is known for his dense compositions which are rich in Haitian Vodou symbolism and iconography. In this painting "Hogoun Chango" or "Ogou Chango," the spirit associated with lightening, thunder, wind and fire is depicted mounted on a horse as he commands flames from the ground. The artist's depiction of flames and smoke hovers on abstraction and winds throughout the complex scene in swaths of rich color, adding yet another layer of ambiguity to the melding of secular and religious elements. The work displays the hallmark's of Hyppolite's best period, the years shortly before his tragic early demise.

Ref.: Dash, J. Michael. "Hector Hyppolite." Museum of Modern Art. www.moma.org. Accessed Aug. 21, 2025; Calcano, Dr. Tamara Diaz. "Hector Hyppolite, Ogou Feray also known as Ogoun Ferraile." Smarthistory. www.smarthistory.org. Accessed Aug. 21, 2025.

  • Dimensions: 24 x 23 1/2 in. (61 x 59.7 cm.), Frame: 31 5/8 x 31 1/4 x 1 1/2 in. (80.3 x 79.4 x 3.8 cm.)
  • Medium: oil on masonite
  • Condition: 2 in. line of inpainting upper center (above horse's neck) and 1/2 in. area of inpainting upper left (above top angel's head) both visible under UV light and to the naked eye; surface dirt; scattered pinpoint losses, light marks, pinpoint dark accretions and small stains throughout; craquelure pattern visible throughout; small losses, abrasions and black marks along all edges likely from contact with frame; unevenly cut edges of panel; frame has marks, nicks and abrasions with toning of the linen liner.

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September 12, 2025 10:00 AM CDT
New Orleans, LA, US

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