Picture That  
 

Hertz Nazaire

With influence from the shores of his native Haiti to his admiration for the masters that came before, Hertz Nazaire creates art from the joy and pain of living. Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, he migrated to the United States at the age of ten and settled in Brooklyn, New York. Hertz discovered his love and talent for painting while in high school and further pursued his educational studies in fine arts and designs at the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Life for Hertz has been extremely challenging, as he has struggled, since birth, with sickle cell anemia. “Though I feel at times that I'm drowning in pain, I struggle on
to break surface somehow, to find that I can stick to my vision for a life full of happy promises despite the agony of my pain.” His illness would eventually cause him to temporarily stop painting and loose most of the vision in his right eye. Despite this, Hertz continued to paint. As a sickle cell disease advocate, Hertz is notably known throughout the world for his “Sickle Cell Series” comprised of three paintings expressing living and coping with chronic pain.

As an artist, Hertz is still evolving and learning his craft. Working in oil pastels, mixed media and acrylics, he particularly enjoys blending the many bright colors of oil pastels he uses with his fingertips. He loves the feel of being closer to and becoming part of what he creates. His work has been exhibited in museums, galleries, and hospitals across the United States and in London. The talent, courage, perseverance and spirituality of Hertz Nazaire are pillars of strength we can all learn to lean on.