“Si no me quieren en vida, cuando muera no me llores” (If you don’t love me in life, don’t cry for me when I die) - sung by hector lavoe, written by Rubén Blades This portrait of my brother and I is one of my favorites because I decided to paint this tribute to him just because I appreciated him so much and I wanted to show it. I painted it in April of 2003 for an exhibit I was doing at Terraza in Elmhurst, Queens where I was living at the time and where my husband had grow

This month marks ten years since my brother’s transition. I usually don’t do cemeteries, but I felt a call to be there with my family for this anniversary. I was scheduled to be in upstate New York and would stop at his grave in Brooklyn on my way back to Puerto Rico. But coronavirus canceled those plans. The airline canceled my flight. So this month I will be sharing images and lessons he inspired that helped me through my grief. When he passed, I was overwhelmed by how unwe

(Post bilingüe / English follows below) Además de ser revolucionario, autor del Grito de Lares, diseñador de nuestra primera bandera, abolicionista, Betances fue médico. Trabajó la epidémica del cólera en Puerto Rico y ayudó con otras enfermedades por varias islas del caribe y en Paris. Cuando pinté este tributo en el 2018, envisioné a Betances iluminando a Puerto Rico y sus islas hermanas antillanas que permanecían oscuras tras el paso de los huracanes Irma y María. Azules a

Cemí Acrylic & metallic copper pigment on black fabric 20" x 30" During this quarantine I share my long-time practice of looking to the past for lessons and tools for getting through today’s challenges. Reflecting on my nene’s upcoming birthday, and in these pandemic times, I find it necessary to lift the narrative surrounding home birth. Eleven years ago (April of 2009), I was trying desperately to go into labor. Almost 2 weeks past my "due date", if I had reached that

I’m Not Sick I’m Pregnant, 2009 Yasmin Hernandez Art Digital Montage on watercolor paper 18" x 12" I am posting this as a reflection on health, illness, pregnancy and home birth and how these tie into today’s pandemic. I've told this story over and over again because it continues to be relevant. I created this work to assert my decision to pursue a home birth for my first son (who thankfully turns 11 this week). As an independent artist who also consulted/ freelanced a