Alain’s Universe

I grew up in Canarsie, Brooklyn, where my Haitian family kept me and my siblings in legliz, lekòl, lakay (church, school, and home) as much as they could. With such limited options, we used lakay to center joy, creativity, and community to materialize our wild imaginations.

Lakay was the universe I created to write, direct, and shoot my first short film with my uncle’s large camcorder before I reached middle school—the mic didn’t work, so I like to consider it a silent film. It’s where I wrote my first song using the instrumentals included in my favorite video game’s soundtracks. I wrote my first poem and church play, and edited my first self-directed music video here, too.

Two decades in as a self-taught digital and film photographer and artist, I’m still intentionally building the universes of my dreams. If any of this resonates with you (or if you simply love Haitian mangoes and/or good coffee as much as I do), let’s connect!