Handcrafted Haitian Metal Art, 3D Bee with Flowers, Uniquely Crafted Wall Decor

Artist- Jean Sylvionel Brutus
“It wasn’t my goal to be an artist as I am today. I wanted to be an engineer or a doctor,” Jean Sylvionel Brutus discloses honestly. “But my mother died in 1989 when I was 4 years old. By the time I was 8, my family didn’t have enough money to survive. My father taught me the iron cut.” In time, he left his father’s shop to apprentice with Jean Claude Soulouque and Nicolson Mathieu. “They pay me for my working, teach me how to manage the tools and they push me up to never fall down.”

When his father died in 2009, Jean Sylvionel was left to support his 5 brothers and four sisters. He is able to do that, “with God’s help. God gives me inspirations that I discover in the sea and in the sky.” His dreams are heartfelt, “I just want to take care of my family as I am supposed to, and help other people who can’t grow up in this art.”


It's Cactus takes the artists through the next steps. By collaborating with them on design creation, placing orders, paying fair wages, and taking Haitian metal sculptures to the global market, great strides are made in helping the craftsmen of Croix-des-Bouquets help themselves. Guided by cultural respect and conscientious business practice, It’s Cactus and its Haitian artists work toward their mutual goals of uplifting lives.

Casey Riddell, founder of It's Cactus takes the artists through the next steps. By collaborating with them on design creation, placing orders, paying fair wages, and taking Haitian metal sculptures to the global market, great strides are made in helping the craftsmen of Croix-des-Bouquets help themselves. Guided by cultural respect and conscientious business practice, It's Cactus and its Haitian partner artists work toward their mutual goals of uplifting lives.

Fair trade isn't just a good idea - its the way we do business.

We offer a hand up, not a hand out to our artist partners in Haiti. Each sale of their metal sculptures represents a positive step toward a better life.

The center of Haitian metal sculpture is the village of Croix-des-Bouquets, where the clanging sound of hammers striking chisels is a constant music. To begin, the artist chalks his design onto the metal. Chisels, dies and a large hammer are used to cut and shape the piece, giving it form and texture. When the highly intricate and physically demanding work is complete and the artist is satisfied with his work, he signs his name boldly with a small chisel and applies a clear, weather-proof coating. The result is a wonderful, fair trade piece of handcrafted art.