SANCTUARY: Our Sacred Place
August 23, 2024 - March 2, 2025
SANCTUARY: Our Sacred Place, a captivating photography exhibition by Little Haiti photographer, Woosler Delisfort, delves into the spiritual origins of Miami’s Indigenous, African and Caribbean communities by capturing moments of divine connection in temples, churches, and mosques. The more than 100-piece exhibition highlights how these cultures are harnessing sacred spaces in Miami as vital sources of life, both politically and spiritually.
In our mother’s womb, we are innocent. Oblivious to the world around us. Our environment matures us until we are prepared to meet our destiny and the path that will lead us there. Harnessed by our incubator, we are anchored to our very first sanctuary and sacred place. And when we must leave this place to face our world, we seek the same protection, depth, warmth, nutrition, and connection provided in the womb.
The Indigenous peoples of our world understood this knowledge, so they created rituals that would ease this transition. But more importantly, our ancestors and elders knew that this sanctuary, this sacred place, was a necessary element for the human condition in all of its growth stages. Our ancestors understood that sacred spaces were about entering the depths of the earth so we could commune with her and other life forms to make sense of our existence and fortify our strength.
Our sacred spaces hold more than comfort, assurance, and community. These locations are vortexes for revolution, healing, congress, and justice. It is where our forces, united, embolden the spirits of weakened bodies and tortured minds. It is the sanctuary from a world contaminated by injustice, confusion, and greed.
You are invited to bear witness to the human condition in search of peace manifested as Mawu-Lissa, Gran Mèt, Allah, God, and Almighty. This photo series documents sanctuary rituals, venerations, and commemorations created by the human condition as a portal into the depths of our multiverse and the spirit world.
Support from The Jorge M. Perez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation has made it possible for HistoryMiami Museum to continue supporting local photographers in documenting and sharing community stories.
Born and raised in Little Haiti, Woosler Delisfort is a self-taught documentary photographer and filmmaker whose mission is to explore the core principles affecting the collective human spirit. His practice uses storytelling to weave together experiences and anecdotes to illuminate the realities of the world. Delisfort began his career documenting the emotions, humanity, and spirituality of the people of Little Haiti in the hopes of replacing the negative stereotypes of crime, drugs, and poverty often associated with his hometown with more positive and personal images of joy, life, and creative expression.
Photographs by Woosler Delisfort. Guest Curators Marie Vickles and Ireọlá Ọláifá. We gratefully acknowledge the staff at the HistoryMiami Museum that have contributed to and worked on this exhibition, as well as the practitioners and extended networks of support both in front and behind the camera lens.
