Rediscovering an architectural movement that could help shape the Caribbean nation’s reconstruction effortsPhotographs by William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Settled In
Six months after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake killed more than 200,000 people and left 1.5 million homeless, reconstruction planners are turning to Haiti's old gingerbread houses as a potential blueprint for rebuilding the devastated Caribbean nation. Vivian Gauthier, 92, runs a dance academy out of her gingerbread house, which she has lived in since 1932.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
A Study In Contrasts
Gauthier's house, with typical high ceilings and large rooms, provides ample teaching space.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
It Was Called Yellow
Colorful gingerbread houses like this one are scattered throughout Port-au-Prince. Sporting their intricate latticework, shiplap siding and ornamental voodoo patterns, these vibrant structures recall a more prosperous era (the late 1800s and early 1900s) in what is today the western hemisphere's poorest country.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Sturdy As They Come
The houses, some almost 100 years old, stand strong, if a bit run-down. Despite the advanced age of the gingerbread houses, very few collapsed under the lateral forces of the January earthquake, unlike most of the newer reinforced concrete structures that dotted Haiti. This has led reconstruction planners to consider adapting this old architectural movement for modern purposes.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
No Place Like Home
A look inside Vivian Gauthier's bedroom in Port-au-Prince's Tergeau neighborhood. Gingerbread houses are adaptations of French and Victorian architectural styles to Haiti's Caribbean milieu.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Landmarks
Even before the earthquake, the gingerbread houses left a distinct impression on many Haitians. The bombastic forms are, however, not without function. Many of the houses feature high ceilings for enhanced ventilation in the Haitian heat, four-sided roofs to better resist hurricane winds and expert carpentry that allows more flexibility in earthquakes.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Rich History
A painting in the lobby of the Hotel Oloffson, one of the earliest examples of gingerbread architecture. Gingerbreads were "not colonial architecture" says Stephen Kelley, an architect sent by the World Monuments Fund to inspect the Haitian buildings. "They're physical embodiments of the lives of the Haitian people."William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Presidential Past
Paul Max Duré has owned his home, once occupied by a former Haitian President, for 25 years.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Taking Care
Despite the crumbling facades, gingerbread residents are quite attached to their rambling homes.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
Making Art Inside Art
A pair of dancers practice in Gauthier's home, where she runs her studio.William Daniels / Panos for TIME
