Ana Mendieta’s earth-body sculptures, grounded in the materiality of earthly substances—fire, rock, sand, feathers, mud—constitute one of the most innovative body of works in contemporary art and reframes the Cuban Imaginary, revitalizing the connection between island and diaspora. This lecture examines Ana Mendieta’s Siluetas as a mythologizing of landscape through the female form. It then turns to the Rupestrian Sculptures carved at Jaruco Park near Havana, a series that retrieves the Taíno legacy while aligning with Fernando Ortiz’s concept of ecomythologies, to suggest the way that Caribbean nature shapes the islands’ creative imagination.

This event is free and open to the public. To confirm your in-person attendance, please write ics@fiu.edu or call (305) 348–1991