Artist Statement

One does not choose ancestry. I, however, choose to be grateful for being Latino. The stories I depict belong to every Latin American that granted my dreams a voice. I am unafraid to chant that my nation is the product of centuries of poverty, famine, and political dispute. I claim that Latin American struggle does not barter surrender in the face of adversity. Hispanic spirit thrives regardless of all social and political disparities. The Latin America I represent is sincere, unapologetic, triumphant, and pure.

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To the Latin American community, immigration consists of abandoning any notion of “home” to pursue a better life. Immigration also creates an inevitable conflict in retaining Latinx Identity. My work explores the subtopics of my dual identity - one born from a Panamanian nationality and a second evolving perspective gathered from a different country. On occasions, I also criticize Latin territories' injustices at the expense of colonization and imperialism.

Through my installations, I expose the remembrance of my culture to the political realities that still fear color. I use culturally specific imagery, such as “molas” (a Panamanian-indigenous textile), public transportation specific to Panama, and maps representing my country to fragment the distance that separates me from my motherland. I elaborate on the concept that Latinx Identity is forever motivated by the expectation that our families' idealized happiness will eventually reward our sacrifice. My work allows me to render my Latinx Identity unsolvable, yet capable of encountering prosperity within the solitude produced by immigration. Ultimately, my narratives portray Latin America through a 
whimsical lens while retributing candor to literary inaccuracies.

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