Troubled Island

Noni Olabisi assisted by Charles Freeman. "The stunning mural that Noni Olabisi created effectively tells the story of the 1791 slave rebellion in Haiti which inspired William Grant Still's opera, Troubled Island. The viewer experiences, dramatically, the pain and suffering of the slaves and the rise to power of Jean-Jacques Dessalines, leader of the slave revolt. In the center of the pictorial saga is William Grant Still, with his spiritual "eye" depicted in the middle of his forehead, conducting his powerful operatic score which expresses the need for a new era of interracial understanding, loving-kindness and God-consciousness on the earth." - Noni Olibisi Sponsored and commissioned by Office of Cultural Affair of the City of Los Angeles. Photo © Ian Robertson-Salt