Yasmin Hernandez Art
Cofre, Betances Bioluminiscente
Keepsake wooden box with archival print, handpainted with acrylic paints
 
This small, wooden, hand-painted keepsake box includes a small archival print of my original 2018 painting of Ramón Emeterio Betances as a luminescent spirit, illuminating the Antilles with bioluminescent waters.  It is inspired by the three bioluminescent bays in Puerto Rico and the legacy of Betances' life and work. Betances was a Puerto Rico-born physician, educated in Paris, where he lived most of his life due to political exile. He dedicated his work to helping patients in Paris, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba and other Caribbean islands. He authored the 1868 Grito de Lares, designed Puerto Rico's first flag (in solidarity with the Dominican Republic where his family was also from) and was also an abolitionist. Known also as "el Antillano" y "el padre de la patria." 
 
Black Backgrounds have been part of my creative practice since 2009 in honor of Vieques’ bioluminescent bay and that took on new meaning after living through Hurricanes Irma and Maria and their dark aftermath.
 
Artist Info:
Yasmin Hernandez is a Brooklyn-born and raised artist whose work is centered on rematriation and liberation themes. She moved to her ancestral homeland of Borikén in 2014, where she is still based. CucubaNación is her artspace in Mayaguez. 

yasminhernandezart.com
rematriatingboriken.com
@yasminhernandezart
 
All images are original artwork by Yasmin Hernandez Art. Under no circumstances should any of the images, in whole or in part, be printed, copied or reproduced without direct permission from the artist. Thank you.