Christopher L. Mitchell is a Haitian-American photographer and director. He attended Pratt and F.I.T. He has been documenting Haiti in all its glory which has been his central focus since the mid 1990s, mostly in the form of still photography. In early 2000’s, he photographed child labor and women’s rights in Mali for UNICEF. He has documented the numerous facets of life in Haiti from photographing the 2010 earthquake for Save The Children, and made music videos for Haitian Artists.
Christopher’s Haitian roots run deep, especially in Jacmel where his mother and her family are originally from and many of his relatives still live today. As a child, he would visit the city at least once a year, and, as an adult, he chose to start his own family here in Jacmel. Through his personal connections to the city, he has had the rare opportunity to gain firsthand access to some of the unique individuals that contribute to Jacmel’s core essence. The annual Carnival captures the intricate history of Jacmel through its music, dance, costumes, and characters. However, cultural traditions are rapidly deteriorating in this modern, globalized world. Gentrification and a shortage of new historians interested in preserving Jacmel’s historical roots continue to threaten the city and its Carnival for future generations living in the digital realm. How are we to safeguard our exuberant history and traditions if no one is replacing the historians who keep that alive? His contribution is the documentary, Kanaval Jacmel.
He is also, working on a second documentary about vodou and the annual vodou ceremony that takes place in Gonaives, North of Haiti.
EXHIBITION & INSTALLATION
Solo
2025 | Agwe et la sireine – Laudromat Art Space Miami
2025 | Shattered Structures, FIU Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator, Miami Beach, FL
2025 | Mass Graves (Little Haiti) | Funded by Midgard Group, Miami
2025 | Nou Souke Ansamn (We Shake Together) | First Church Miami, Miami
2024 | Les Sirènes – Art on the Plaza, MOCA, Miami
2024 | Kanaval Jacmel, African American Research Library and Cultural Center, Fort Lauderdale
Group
2025 | Black History Month Art Show | Little Haiti Cultural Complex, Miami
2024 | Ti Ayiti Art – Art Basel | Lakou Miami (Programmed by Midgard Group)
2023 | Art Beat – Kanaval | Art Basel
2023 | Kanaval Jacmel | Alliance Française, Jacmel
2021 | Le Brunch & L’Art, Art Basel , Miami
Awards and Fellowships
2025 Bakehouse Summer Open Residency (June-September)
2023 & 2024 Knight Foundation Art + Research Center (A+RC) Fellowship
Publications
Nou Souke Ansanm: Exhibition Catalog, FlipHTML5, January 2025.
Karen-Janine Cohen, A MOCA meeting of Mermaids and a Place to Call Home, ArburstMiami, September 2024
Meet Christopher Mitchell, CanvasRebel, March 2024
Talks / Panels / Presentations
Artist talk, FIU MBUS, Miami, 2025
Photo Critique guest lecturer, FIU, 2025
Act of Valor, Performer and costume, PAMM, 2025
Nou Souke Ansanm Artist Talk, First Church Miami, 2025
Art On The Plaza Conversation, MOCA, 2024
Mask Workshop, MOCA, 2024