Charcoal on wood (outside)
Found objects and audio (inside)
48”(h) x 49”(w) x 48”(d)

This installation is dedicated to the survivors of one of the most catastrophic events in history. Hurricane Maria, a category 5 storm hit my homeland of Puerto Rico on September 20th, 2017.  Maria made landfall on the island with over 185 mph winds and rain lasting for more than 30 hours. It completely wiped out the power infrastructure, and destroyed homes, schools, hospitals, businesses, and agriculture. Hundreds of thousands of people were left to live for many months without basic necessities, and thousands of lives were lost as a result of the lack of resources.

Since October 2nd of 2017, a week after the hurricane made landfall, I’ve traveled every month to Puerto Rico to bring relief aid and assist in the recovery and rebuilding efforts. One of the municipalities I've chosen to focus on is San Sebastian, where my paternal family is from.  San Sebastian is in the mountainous northwestern part of the island, and has many rivers running through it. In the weeks after the storm, the municipality had areas that experienced difficulties receiving assistance due to blocked roads from fallen trees, flooding, and landslides. While delivering aid to these areas, I met many people with heart breaking survival stories. The first community in San Sebastian I delivered supplies to was in El Culebrinas where I met Digna Quiles. While Digna was very welcoming and invited me into her home, she was clearly very traumatized from the effects of Maria.

My time spent with Digna inspired me to create a new series of Caja De Memoria Viva portrait installations called Sobrevivientes (Survivors).  Digna is the first subject of the series which provides an intimate view of life post-Maria, and reflects the unfortunate “new normal” being lived by the Puerto Rican people. Digna is approximately 60 years old and about 5 feet tall.  At the time Maria hit, she lived alone with her dog because her husband had passed away 8 months prior to storm. She lives in a small part of the El Culebrinas neighborhood known as, Villa Sofia, which is adjacent to the Rio Culebrinas (Culebrinas River). During the storm, the river, as well as the the smaller tributaries and waterways that branch off of it, swelled and rose into the streets flooding the neighborhood, including Digna’s home. With the water level rising to over 8ft inside, the force of the flood water combined with constant rain and hurricane winds, pulled Digna and her dog out of their home. Digna was rescued by a neighbor, but unfortunately her companion dog could not be rescued. When I entered Digna’s home, she had no furniture, visible water damage everywhere, and was sleeping on a mattress on the floor. She hadn’t had clean drinking water in days, and was collecting the rainwater in 5 gallon buckets. The desperation for basic needs like clean water was heartbreaking.

The inside of the box also replicates what tens of thousands of houses looked like after the storm. The peeled back zinc roof, exposed wood beams, a blue tarp, and hanging solar lanterns became the normal landscape. Torn tropical colored walls replicate the damage caused by the winds ripping through houses. Flood water lines mark the walls left by the overflowing rivers and ocean waters, along with wood rot stains and growing black mold. For weeks and months following Maria, families were cleaning up this type of damage from their homes...and for many the work still continues.

An audio recording of Digna’s voice speaking about her experience before and after the hurricane hit her home plays from inside the box. Digna’s voice does not only represent her personal experience, but also that of the other hundreds of thousands of voices affected that we may never hear.

A few of the PR-tifacts collected and hanging inside the installation include; Toy trucks that resemble actual construction trucks used to clear roads of fallen trees and debris. Religious items like rosaries and prayer cards that symbolize the immense faith in God the Puerto Rican people have. A Puerto Rico history book and United States encyclopedia covers symbolizing the struggle Puerto Ricans have been living through as a colony of the United States for 120 years. Medication bottles and insulin that symbolize the lack of medical attention and care for the sick, that lead to the deaths of many people post-Maria. A Military food bag, pack of candy, crackers, Vienna sausage cans, and a fruit bar are REAL examples of the foods given to the Puerto Rican people to survive on by the United States government agencies.

I met Anibal Mojica in November 2017 while bringing relief supplies in his neighborhood of Punta Santiago, Humacao. Anibal’s house was one of the many in the area that still had the belongings of the residents scattered all throughout the property.

I stopped to take a photo of the devastation caused by Maria, when I heard a man calling from across the street. It was Anibal. He was very welcoming and open to sharing his experiences of what he saw during and after the hurricane.

He shared that unfortunately he was sleeping across the street at a neighbors house, on a table on the front porch. As he walked us through his property showing us where his bedroom was, where his kitchen was … etc, I asked what was he going to do with all of his things that were scattered around? He said he was going to throw them away because the ocean water and rain caused too much water damage. Shortly after, as I was taking photos of his property and speaking with him. He shows me one of his film cameras that was damaged by the salt water. He shared that he also loved to take pictures. This was one of his belongings that he planned to throw away, along with his granddaughters toys, paperwork, and so much more. I humbly asked if I could take some of his things with me so he didn’t have to throw them away. So I may share his story and show his belongings to people that would never experience something like he did. To remind the world of what our people are going through, and that we will never be forgotten.

Anibal’s experience is just one of the millions of people that were thrown into a new normal way of living in Puerto Rico.

Charcoal on wood, audio recording, witch hazel aroma, original photographs, antique objects
48"x48"x48″

Caja de la Memoria Viva II is a multimedia exhibit that represents the life of Doña Constancia Colon-Clemente a Black Puerto Rican who migrated to the United States in the 1940s. Upon reflection, it is yet another example of the racial separation and rejection within our own people. Her story is just one of many that could be told.

On tour with the Outwin Boochever 2016 "American Portraiture Today" National Portrait Gallery Smithsonian Museum. I won the People's Choice award at the National Portrait Gallery with the largest number of votes in the exhibitions history (over 40K votes), as well as having the most votes at the Tacoma Art Museum. 

Charcoal on wood (outside) & Mixed Media (inside)
48x48x48″

Caja De La Memoria Viva I: Antonio Hernandez is a multimedia exhibit that represents the life of Antonio Hernandez Vicente. In this three dimensional multimedia installation the viewer will enter Antonio’s head, You will hear his mind speaking about his life, you will smell his café, his thoughts and experiences being told. His thoughts on the process of aging and memory. Through Don Antonio’s story I embark on a quest to visually represent how precious our memories are and capture in the portrait installations the dignity in the people’s struggle and validate their existence.

Charcoal & graphite on wood, pastels on cardboard
24″x36″

“Aguas De Libertad” was created for an exhibit at the Brennan Gallery (NJ) called “ves·sel”. A fusion of both literal and metaphorical interpretations of ‘container’, ‘ship’, ‘body’ and ‘blood’, ves·sel seeks to emphasize American-ness of Black History. The exhibition acknowledges the history that is often obscured by the journey forward.

“Aguas De Libertad” was inspired by Abolitionist movement in Puerto Rico led by Ramon Betances to free children who were slaves, taking advantage of their need to receive the sacrament of Baptism at the town church. Buying the freedom of slave children cost more if the child had been baptized, than a child that was not.  Before the child was baptized, Betances or his partners gave money to the parents, which they in turn used to buy the child’s freedom from his master. However, the child, once freed, was baptized minutes after. This action was later described as having the child receive the “aguas de libertad” (waters of liberty)

Wood, graphite, charcoal, ink, book pages, crayon, vintage wood luggage, vintage toy train
36″ x 18″
2015

“Oportunidades" is dedicated to the many migrant children from Central America with their lives at risk migrating North for opportunities, and often encountering not necessarily better ones. 

Graphite on Wood/Mixed media
17″x29′x6″

Inspired by a photo taken by Jack Delano, “Si, Yo Tambien Sueño” (Yes, I Also Dream) focusses on the children and families of land/factory workers in Puerto Rico.

Wood, acrylic, charcoal, sand, faux bushes, resin, sculpy

I created these miniature border fence memorials in honor of those brave souls that risked their lives to cross the Mexico/United States border and died on their journey. Each border fence was designed differently based on geolocation, from California to Texas. 

The more than 600 miles of border walls have a wide range of designs. In some cases, these appear to have been developed on the spot, with little or no forethought, while others were developed at a "fence lab," where the wall designs were subjected to potential abuse by Border Patrol agents to determine how long it will take a prospective crosser to climb or cut them.

These are miniatures are referred to by the Border Patrol as "pedestrian fencing" that are meant to stop crossers on foot, and are 15 to 18 feet tall.

The miniature raft is known to carry migrants across the Suchiate River connecting Guatemala and Mexico. Migrants pay $1.50 per person to cross the river, and raft owners pay Mexican police guarding the river to allow them to cross. 

Creating miniatures reverses perspective, because nothing can compete against desperation. The borders being 15ft+ tall in physicality isn't enough to stop the man traveling to work extreme manual labor jobs for low wages to support his family back in his country, it doesn't stop the young boy escaping the gangs that want to recruit him and if he refuses they will kill his entire family, it doesn't stop the mother traveling to be back after being  deported to be with her children that were born in the United States. The size of the obstacle is based on the perspective of the viewer.

Hand carved dried coconut, branches, acrylic, stain, dried grass, salvaged wood

Collaboration with Juan Pablo Vizcaino (mask maker from Loiza, Puerto Rico)

During the transatlantic slave trade Africans from the Congo were taken and brought to Puerto Rico as slaves. Tainos and Africans shared many survival and craft skills, including the skill of hand carving. The original design of the Vejigante mask from Loiza was inspired by the traditional masks of the Congo.

I designed this mask to represent the influence and pride of the African heritage in Puerto Rico. Carving the mask to have a traditional Vejigante style but with Congolese colors, markings, and shapes. "KOKABOLA" is a Lingala word meaning to divide; to share. In Loíza, the vejigantes represent the Muslim Moors in the Catholic festival of the Feast of Santiago. This festival, also celebrates the ouster of the Moors from Spain. Some explain their inclusion in the religious festival as a symbol of the ongoing battle of good over evil. No matter the history, Loíza’s population (primarily of African descent) views the vejigante as a strong, and unapologetic character with a history of survival and a connection to Africa that they can relate to.

Charcoal & graphite on wood
24″x24″

Charcoal & graphite on wood, vintage objects (trunk, photos, toys, washboard, and books)

Questions are asked … Is she crying? Is she playing? Is she shy? Is she embarrassed? Is she hiding? Not knowing what emotion is being represented is my favorite part of this piece. Depending on the message I feel should be brought forth, she can be positioned in different environments.
In this particular installation, the expectations of women/little girls in the household and in society are being represented. The artifacts I’ve used symbolize the pressures put on little girls to manage a household by cooking, cleaning, being involved in the spiritual foundation, and much more at a young age.

Graphite on Wood/Mixed media
18″x16′x4″

Inspired by my trip to Cuba

Graphite on vintage book pages printed in Havana Cuba in 1952

Graphite and Charcoal on wood with Mixed Media

32×24

Animal symbols serve as reminders of qualities (i.e. strength, wisdom, patience) we all want to have. As reminders, the rooster sign conveys deeper meaning, and an aid on our path to obtaining the qualities of the virtue we desire. The rooster has been celebrated to be a protector, a guardian that enlightens paths to our hidden self or enlightens our path to take notice of hidden powers. The rooster is the celebration of life by embracing the sun. The more common symbolism of the rooster is strength, courage, and masculinity.

Pastel on black paper

 11"x14"

Inspired by a photograph from a Santeria ceremony in Habana Cuba.

“…Estaba Aquí” means “…Was Here” in Spanish, is a reflection of our past and present time of being. This latrine structure reminds us of Los Jibaritos (the countryman) of Puerto Rico and their lifestyles, and to be reminded that they were and still ARE here.
The poem on the wall is beautiful poem interpretation of what a Puerto Rican is, by Manuel A. Alonso called “El Puertorriqueño” (The Puerto Rican).
Just like the modern bathroom stalls today, from love messages, to “calling cards” to an “I WAS HERE” message, these writings mark time and evokes a human presence that is subjective to the reader.

“…Estaba Aquí” is an interactive piece that allows visitors to enter inside and mark time by writing their own personal messages on the walls.

Color moreno, frente despejada,
mirar lánguido, altivo y penetrante,
la barba negra, pálido el semblante,
rostro enjuto, nariz proporcionada.

Mediana talla, marcha compasada;
el alma de ilusiones anhelante,
agudo ingenio, libre y arrogante,
piensa inquieto, mente acalorada.

Humano, afable, justo, dadivoso,
en empresa de amor siempre variable,
tras la gloria y place siempre afanoso.

Y en amor a su patria insuperable
Este es, a no dudarlo, fiel diseño
para copia un buen puertorriqueño.

by Manuel A. Alonso

Dedication installation to my grandfather Fernando Román.

Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead was originally a month long celebration where the indigenous peoples of Mexico celebrated the return of their ancestors and family members who had passed away.  The dead are honored through costume, lavish altars, colorful flowers, food and more. All items were gathered to help guide the dead back to our world for that limited time.

In honor of this very ancient ceremony, our vision is to provide an experience and space for people of all cultural backgrounds to participate by honoring, mourning, and celebrating their ancestors and passed loved ones together as a community. Neither myself nor my art partner are of Mexican descent, but both we both understand the importance of celebrating and honoring the ones that came before us.

The 2014  theme was "Our Lives Matter: The untimely deaths of our people". As a collective community the participants will acknowledge and mourn the deaths of identified and unidentified migrants across the globe that have left their homelands due to gang violence, extreme poverty, or life and job opportunities. The artist’s intent are to honor both the physical and spiritual forms of migration from one land to another/from one world to another and empower communities not to be divided, but to stand together and build a collective voice and proclaim "Our Lives Matter."

We built an installation and community altar that played a vital role in the viewer’s interactive experience. Space was provided for visitors to bring their own items to be placed on the altar, as well as space on the walls surrounding the altar to write messages to their passed lost loved ones. Additional art was on display around the room and an Augmented Reality installation.

A ceremonial performance and traditional blessing of the altar performed by “Cetilizti Nauchampa Quetzacoalt In Ixachiltlan“ during the opening reception. In addition, dressed in costume and makeup in traditional Dia de los Muertos fashion, Ase Music performed dance theater from the African Diaspora.

Please visit diadelosmuertoscollective.com for more information.

August 2012

I had the honor of creating my first mural for the Los Muros Hablan festival in El Barrio NYC. The theme of the festival was the word "Diaspora".

The haloed child wearing a traditional Vejigante mask from Loiza Puerto Rico throwing Pan Am paper airplanes along 111th street, symbolizes the sanctification and innocence of the migrants that were lured into the U.S. to work as industrial and agricultural laborers under "Operation Bootstrap" in the 1940′s. Pan Am being the first commercial airline to transport Puerto Ricans from the island to New York City.

To create a more interactive and personal experience for the community, I asked longtime residents, elders, and children of El Barrio to assist me in making the mural and by making and designing paper airplanes that we would hang on the trees lining 111th street.

Aguas De Oro Mural (Golden Waters Mural)

Corner of 47th street and 5th ave in Sunset Park Brooklyn NY
Created for the 1st Annual Puerto Rican Parade in Sunset Park Brooklyn

Gold is the color of success, achievement and triumph, abundance and prosperity, luxury and quality, prestige and sophistication, value and elegance. Yellow means joy, happiness, energy, has the power to stimulate mental activity. These two color choices for this one little rain drop means HOPE for a lot of our people, especially in neighborhoods like Sunset Park. It's difficult to believe sometimes that when the dark clouds come trying to rain on our "parade"... Collectively we bottle up enough golden yellow rain drops through those clouds to overcome it together.
The mask represents our Puerto Rican people, the rooster represents our pride and strength, a guardian, a celebration of life and embracing the sun. The flood water means new beginnings and old grief and emotional confusion become further washed away.

The specially commissioned installation piece by mixed-media artist, Adrián Viajero Román, encompasses a “sancocho” (collage) of disparate pieces of art, ready-mades, archival documents, and objects that serve as a prologue to the various themes and artistic practices inspired by the Young Lords and Loisaida. Román’s installation serves as a shrine that actively honors and memorializes those under-celebrated community-based activists and artists who took it upon themselves to laboriously and creatively envision a new future for a community under siege. In this piece, Román deconstructs and reimagines 1969 -- when the Lords first started – and integrates both historical reflection and contemporary collectivity into that history. This re-articulation of 1969 highlights experiences that vehemently challenge colonialism, social alienation, and powerlessness.

Overall, Román propels us to reflect upon the interconnections between the past and our current everyday encounters as an opportunity to actively participate in creative interventions. At the same time, his piece highlights the impact of the activism foregrounded by the Young Lords on a contemporary generation of artists who seek to practice art outside of sacrosanct art spaces and within neighborhood community centers. 

Description written by: Dr. Wilson Valentin-Escobar Profesor at Hamshire College

Charcoal, spray paint, paper umbrella, digital prints
36"

This umbrella focusses on migration and celebrating our beauty, pride, and resilience in the face of inequality and injustice.
The monarch butterfly represents the dignity and resilience of migrants, and the right that we all have the right to move freely. 

 

Mixed Media
34'X9'

A multi-media installation and series of programs that celebrate Puerto Rican history, both on the island of Puerto Rico and in New York City. This project seeks to bring forth collective memories of travel, migration and dislocation; of leaving home and creating home again. 

With the current (economic, social, political, health care, education) crisis threatening the island of Puerto Rico, the project seeks to delve into an exploration of the forced migration of hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans to the United States, and the survival of communities and towns throughout the island. How does culture remain vibrant in times of such mobility? What are the memories that connect us to the various places we call home?

Over the next three months, Román will collaborate with the Loisada Center, a historic cultural center located in New York City’s Lower East Side - a neighborhood with a historically high concentration of Puerto Ricans that brings together residents from both the Island and New York City for creative learning, innovation and a celebration of culture.

From May-July, a variety of workshops will take place both at Loisaida and at Facebook. A series of interviews will generate content to be incorporated into the Facebook installation, such as portraits of community members, personal objects and hand-written stories. The piece will evolve and grow over time, becoming a vibrant collage of Puerto Rican identity, culture, and community empowerment amidst a backdrop of change, uncertainty and transformation.

Related to the BRIC Fireworks Project, The Spinning Wheel, I was commissioned to create a mural inspired by the poems of Living Theater alum Steve Ben Israel. A combination of graffiti techniques and materials will be on display drawing a reference to the street, a place where Israel performed and embodied his belief in art as an active engagement in the world around us.

(Protestor Figures) 
Graphite on die-cut wood, mounted on wood, acrylic, chalk
12"X12"

(Protestor Signs) 
Polymer clay, wood, acrylic, cardboard
4"X6"

In solidarity with fight against the injustices suffered by Black and Brown people in America. This protestor collection highlights the killings of unarmed people of color by the police, and the fight for migrant human rights. The figures and signs are references from protests in cities across America that have experienced these injustices in recent years. 
 

Part of the EXODUS series
Graphite on vintage envelope
4"X7"