A gallery of Haitian Art
SINCE 1974

For decades, Ti-Tra has been the general handyman at the legendary Galerie Issa in Port-au-Prince. He was the man who built the stretchers and tacked on the canvas on which the gallery artists painted . Ti-Tra swept the leaves and opened the big iron gates when clients came to call, He would greet you with a loud, joyous,
" Bonjour". But most of all, he was the one who packed the paintings so expertly; he has a PhD in art packing. He could make you a box of any size or shape from the recycled refrigerator boxes and other used cardboard that the gallery supplied. In his free time, Ti Tra painted wonderful paintings.

After the death of Issa in 2005, Ti Tra stayed on, of course, as he had become like a member of the family.

Since then, the Galerie has been refurbished, to say the least. It has become "Galerie el Saieh", thanks to the efforts of Sharona and Mannu el Saieh and their four children. It is now a showplace. The stacks and piles of fabulous paintings that made it adventurous to walk in the gallery in Issa's time have been organized and there is plenty of open floor space. And the Art, as always, is spectacular and well priced. ElSaieh gallery is a two minute drive from the Grand Hotel Oloffson. if you are in Haiti, pay them a visit.

Ti Tra passed away in May of 2011 after a long illness.
His real name was Patrius Dauphin, a noble moniker for a noble man.

"TiTra" was the nickname given to him by his mother when he was a child.

It means "Little Trash". It never seemed to affect his self esteem though.