Calentón was inspired principally by The Snake Charmer (1907) by Henri Rousseau and the various works by Paul Gaugin from when he resided in Tahiti. Additionally, I looked to the long and storied printmaking tradition in Puerto Rico as a stylistic influence. With this piece, the final of the large works created for Las santas vienen por ahí, I wanted to create something about Puerto Rico.

In many ways, this piece is a fruitless meditation into what it means to be puertorican. Without adhering to racial stereotypes, without the gaze of the other which is imposed upon us as a colony- what’s left? An island, that belongs to us everyday less and less. Traditions with their growth stunted by the imposition of American culture. A bloodline, a heritage of strife. And heat, always that unforgiving, sticky, tropical heat.