Waters of the Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom

Fabiola Jean-Louis
On view February 27 - May 25, 2025

Multi-disciplinary Fabiola Jean-Louis’s captivating exhibition at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum invites visitors on a journey through the ancient and eternal, earthly and divine, personal and political. Waters of the Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom by Fabiola Jean-Louis features a large amount of original commissions from the Haitian artist, crafted from the stunningly intricate marriage of paper pulp, mineral stones, shells, metals, glass, and more. Invoking the sanctity of Vodou and its role in Haitian liberation, these works will transform the Museum’s three rotating exhibition spaces, Hostetter Gallery; Fenway Gallery; and the Anne H. Fitzpatrick Façade, into a map of personal histories, a site of communion, and a spiritual portal.

Gift at the Gardner's exhibition collection includes gifts from Haitian artisans, contemporary nautical finds, and must-read literature about Haitian culture.

Please note that Waters of the Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom by Fabiola Jean-Louis is no longer on view. Fabiola Jean Louis' Ayiti-Tomè, 2025 is currently viewable on the Anne H. Fitzpatrick Façade outside of the Museum.